


More Than A Pet

by kinkymochi



Category: GOT7
Genre: Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Cat/Human Hybrids, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Hybrid - Freeform, Hybrid AU, Hybrids, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-30
Updated: 2018-08-07
Packaged: 2019-04-30 10:07:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 38,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14494623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinkymochi/pseuds/kinkymochi
Summary: Youngjae is a rich business man who's an advocate for hybrid rights, despite not being an expert on them by an means. Unlike most business men he's met with and known, he actually doesn't have his head shoved up his ass. That being said, getting Mark, a cat hybrid, wasn't the first thing that he wanted to do when waking up that morning. After threatening to shut the adoption center down for mistreatment, he ended up taking Mark home with him. It was a bit of a journey to get Mark to open up to him, but after Mark opened up, Youngjae and him were practically inseparable. One day, when wanting to treat Mark to sushi, they end up at a different restaurant instead. A restaurant that so happens to be a secret hybrid servicing ring, and they so happen to get Yugyeom instead when they order food. Other than Youngjae and Mark both having a decent set of morals that make them want to take down the place, the both feel drawn to Yugyeom; Mark more-so than Youngjae. The problem is, will they be able to get Yugyeom out of there? Much less alive?





	1. Chapter 1

Youngjae was many things; a businessman, kind of wealthy even though he didn't really like admitting it, kind, a wrong-timing extraordinaire, but he wasn't a hybrid owner. He could go on and on about the reasons why he didn't want a hybrid, but the bottom line was that he was too awkward and he didn't feel right supporting it. Tons of his business contacts had hybrids, most of them had three or four (some of them twice as many as that, but we won't get into that right now), but he also knew what went on behind closed doors. While he didn't own a hybrid, he was kind-of a silent advocate for them. He had signed many petitions and went to many protests for Hybrid Rights, and once he even got something changed because of how high he was on the Business Totem Poll. He had gotten a bill passed that improved hybrid living conditions, both at stores/breeders and at home. That was the proudest that Youngjae had felt, and he thinks about it frequently.

Though, sometimes he did toy around with the idea of having one. Not in an owning sense, he felt sick even just thinking of that, but more in a companionship sense. His house was quite big, it'd be weird if his social circles saw a small quaint house. He was a rich businessman after all (even though he doesn't like admitting he's wealthy), and he had to show it regardless if he wanted to or not. It was just the social standard of his class. So, he had a house too big for one lone occupant. He'd quite enjoy some company, but then again he'd quite enjoy the entire cucumber species to just die out completely, but that wasn't happening anytime soon. Besides, he really felt too awkward to buy one, and he didn't want to support an industry he didn't approve of. Even though he was an advocate for their rights, Youngjae really didn't know that much about them. Which, he probably should, seeing as how often he went to protests and signed petitions. Would that be weird? Reading information on hybrids? Would that make him a weirdo?

Youngjae had innocent intentions, he really did. He just didn't want to be weird, which is something that keeps him from doing a lot of things. Like wanting to read his newspaper in the kitchen in nothing but a robe and boxers. Oddly enough, he felt too awkward to 'buy' a hybrid, but not too awkward to go to protests. His friends always told him he needed to just be a little more outgoing and then his awkward nature would fade away, so maybe he should start taking their advice. Youngjae sighed, looking up at the clock before getting out of his desk chair and putting his suit jacket back on. It was almost 5, which meant it was time to go home for him. Something he both looked forward to and was a bit apprehensive to it. He didn't like how empty it was and sure, he had his business parties, but those only lasted a few hours, sometimes the whole night if he was lucky. He only had business parties once every month, so there was the other 353 days out of the year that he was just by himself.

He put his wallet and keys in his pocket, grabbing his phone before locking the door from the inside and walking to the elevator. Maybe he'd just stop at one of the stores and have a quick look. Besides, it would just be for friendship, and even if the hybrid ended up hating him, he'd still let them stay; he wasn't a monster. He wouldn't feel right at all tossing them out, and sure it'd suck living with someone who hated him, but he'd grin and bear it. Youngjae finally reached his car, and he quickly got inside, wanting to be as far away from his work as possible. There were many hybrid stores downtown, so maybe he'd just park there and walk around for a little bit. It sounded like a good idea, plus Youngjae really needed to stretch his legs after being stuck in that office chair all day. So, Youngjae arrived in the main area of downtown rather quickly, seeing as how his work was just on the outskirts of it. He had a space reserved for him here downtown, so it wasn't trouble at all looking for parking.

He got out of his car, brushing his hair back with his fingers. He decided it was a bit too hot for the suit jacket, so he took it off along with his tie. Ah, finally, he could breathe. He made sure his keys, wallet, and phone were with him before closing the car door and locking it. He strolled down the street for a minute before landing his eyes on a hybrid shop, and he was going to just pass by this one until he saw one of the hybrids wearing a metal ankle bracelet that connected to a corner of the cage he was in. This was actually illegal, something that was in the bill he managed to pass. Anger bubbled inside of him, but he managed to keep himself calm and flash a smile at the hybrid attached to the ankle bracelet. Years of being a CEO of a major company taught him restraint and calm, which came in handy more often than not. He noticed the hybrid only stared, backing away to the furthest corner.

His hair and ears were an eye-catching red, and his tail was the same red with the small patch of blonde at the end. The hybrids actions only worried Youngjae further, and that's what motivated him even more to step foot into the shop. Surprisingly, it seemed as if the rest of the hybrids conditions fell into code, it seemed to only be him. Were they punishing him for something? It's wrong to take away someone's living conditions simply because they're misbehaving, a term he didn't really like using in the same sentence as talking about hybrids. They were people, for fucks sake, not animals. They should be treated like such. Youngjae looked around for a minute before spotting the dark-haired woman who he assumed owned the store. She stood behind the front desk, sorting things into baskets. He approached her smoothly, flashing a white-toothed smile when their eyes met.

"Hello, I'm Choi Youngjae of-" He began.

"Of Choi Industries, yes I know." She said almost breathlessly, clearly taken away with him.

"Oh, wonderful, then you know my work I do with Hybrid Rights, yes?" He questioned calmly.

"Y-Yes, of course." She stumbled.

"Well, then can you tell me why he's chained to the floor like some kind of wild beast? It's in violation of Hybrid Bill Act 12, page 5, paragraph 22, the first line states that hybrids may not have their limbs physically restricted or be confined in areas smaller than they can lay down flat in, and it clearly seems that you're in violation of both of those things." He flashed another smile, keeping his voice as calm and as sweet as before.

"The bill you put forth, yes, I'm sorry. He's just such a handful, and he's been returned twice, and he keeps biting me-" She began to ramble, looking for her keys.

"Can you tell me more about his conditions?" Youngjae questioned.

"I'm sorry?" She said, holding her keys and clearly confused.

"Well, it's a mercy that I'm not reporting you to the authorities, so if you can tell me his other living conditions and we can simply work them out here. Or, would the police be a better option for you?" He questioned and she was stunned for a moment.

"O-Of course not, sir. We feed him once a day, the others have their regular 3-4 meals with snacks in between. They have as much water as they need, but we've limited his as, uh, as part of his punishment." She almost mumbled the first part.

"I see, well, that's also clearly not legal, but I think you already knew that." He eyed her and she sighed, walking over to the hybrids cage.

"Why are you bothering me? There's plenty of other shops in violation-" She began.

"Well, if you can give me the proper information, I'll have them inspected." Youngjae raised his brows following her.

"Right, of course you would," She sighed, "There's no need to arrest me, we're tossing him out, anyway."

"Tossing him out? He's not a broken toy." Youngjae said, eyebrows furrowing together and the hybrid now looking frightened.

"Yes, he's been here for 4 years in total, returned twice, and hasn't been bought in two years," The lady explained, "I'm kicking him out onto the streets, and letting my uncle do whatever."

He knew she could simply kick him out after the right amount of time had passed, that was still legal unfortunately. And once he's out there, she technically doesn't really have to get involved any further, meaning what she said about her uncle isn't illegal either. However, the implications that went behind that were still illegal, the only problem being he couldn't really prove that that's what her uncle wanted to do. His hands were a bit tied, and she knew that. Mark seemed to know what the shop owner meant about her uncle, because he was violently shaking his head no, with wide-frightened eyes. He backed himself up as far as he could go, almost looking like he wanted to cry. Youngjae couldn't just let that happen, but what could he do? He saw the lady unlock the cage, and his heart sped up, and he could faintly hear small sobs coming from the red-haired hybrid. What could he do, though?

Youngjae suddenly got the idea that he could simply just buy the red-haired hybrid. He'd have a far better place to live with him, and he could eat and drink whatever and whenever he wanted. Would the hybrid want to come home with Youngjae though? He didn't really want to force him to live together with him, but what else could he do? There was nothing, and if Youngjae didn't act quickly, this hybrid would be forced into the underground, getting used by all sorts of disgusting men and women. Youngjae almost felt sick at the thought. He saw the lady strongly grip the hybrids arm, yanking him and forcing him out of the cage. The hybrid was clearly malnourished, and certainly didn't have the strength to fend her off.

"I'll buy him." Youngjae winced at his words, and both the lady and the hybrid stopped to look up at him.

"Pardon?" She questioned.

"I said I'll buy him." He said, this time with more confidence.

"Buy him? You don't even know his breed, his name, or anything else, not to mention he's been returned TWICE and you don't even know what for!" The lady exclaimed.

"It won't change my mind." Youngjae replied truthfully.

"You don't even know how much he is." She narrowed her eyes.

"I'm Choi Youngjae, remember? I'm sure I can afford him." He flashed a smile and the lady sighed, letting go of mark and shoving him back in the cage.

"I'd prefer it if you didn't hurt him, and he can just stand with me." He smiled and the lady almost looked irritated.

"Right, sure, whatever you say," She motioned mark to get up, who did after a moments hesitation, "His name is Mark, by the way, and his breed specializes in-"

"You don't have to tell me that bit, I'm sure it won't matter." Youngjae held up his hand and the woman only nodded her head before rolling her eyes and moving past him.

"Right-O." She said, moving behind the counter.

"Where are his shoes?" Youngjae questioned, looking down at Mark's feet.

"He kept throwing them at me so I took them away, and yes I know it's in violation. We have some shoes in the clothing isle. Would you like a few minutes?" She questioned.

"Yes, thank you," Youngjae said.

He looked back at Mark's eyes, that he now noticed were dark blue, with a classic cat-eye pupil. He could hardly believe the way Mark was being treated, how can someone do something like that to another person? He always forgot that most people saw hybrids as possessions rather than just people. Still, he couldn't wrap his brain around why they thought like that. He sighed, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. He's been keeping his cool for a while now, but it seemed to be getting increasingly difficult to do. He just had to keep it together until they left the shop, and then he could just forget about this whole thing. Targeting Mark for something he couldn't control was unnecessary and wrong. He sighed, shaking his head before moving his hand and looking back at Mark. Mark was now looking at the ground, ears tucked into his hair and blending in, you almost couldn't see them. Wait, Mark knew he wasn't mad at him right? He was mad that the shop owner, stressed too, but he wasn't mad at Mark.

Youngjae figured he should've chosen his actions a bit better than he had. He didn't want Mark to think he hated him when they've only met for a few minutes. But, when Youngjae almost hits a boiling point, he tends not to think before he does. He noticed how Mark played with his hands, and how close they were to his stomach. His tail was almost tucked in between his legs and he winced for a moment, pulling his hands into his stomach. Great, Mark is starving and Youngjae managed to make Mark feel like shit on the first moment the get alone. Only someone with his level of awkwardness could accomplish such a feat. Youngjae took his bottom lip between his teeth, a nervous habit that he had developed recently. He moved to put a hand on Mark's shoulder, but he just flinched away, so Youngjae drew back.

"I'm not mad at you Mark, I'm sorry if I made you feel that way," Mark looked up at him, "How about we pick out some shoes from here and then go get something to eat?"

Mark nodded after a moment, taking a thumb nail in between his teeth.

"Great! I'm Youngjae, by the way, but I'm sure you could hear me talking to her." Youngjae laughed a bit, moving to where the shoes were, with mark trailing behind.

"Ah, here we are," Youngjae said after a moment, turning down the isle, "You can pick whatever you'd like, I'm going to be taking you clothes shopping anyway." Youngjae smiled at him, and Mark seemed confused.

"...Pick?" Mark questioned hesitantly.

"Yeah, whatever you'd like, I'm not going to tell you what to wear." Youngjae nodded, brushing his hair back with his hand again.

"...Anything?" Mark questioned and Youngjae nodded.

"Yep, whatever you want, as long as it'll fit you." Youngjae flashed another kind smile, and Mark hesitantly started looking.

Youngjae began to wonder what happened with his previous owners to make him so scared. He furrowed his brows as he began to lose himself a bit in his own thoughts. He'd do whatever he could to help Mark get out of his protective shell, and show him that he'd never treat him like that. Mark should know that he shouldn't be treated like that, that it shouldn't be the norm, and that there was no reason to be scared with him. His heart clenched as he saw Mark drop one of the shoe boxed, flinching greatly before looking up at Youngjae with a mixture of fright and expectation. What did he think Youngjae was going to do? Hit him? Youngjae just smiled, telling him that it was alright before picking up the box and putting it back. Mark looked confused, simply staring at Youngjae. Youngjae could only imagine what he was thinking, but he tried to emit an aura of calm, so that at least Mark would feel better about this whole thing.

After a moment, Youngjae noticed Mark's eyes lingering on a particular box of shoes, and Youngjae wondered why. Until, that is, he saw the price. It was only $30, but he figured Mark probably felt like he shouldn't ask for something of that price, and Youngjae's assumptions were correct. Youngjae moved to pick up the box, raising his eyebrows as he made eye contact with Mark, who now had wide eyes.

"Do you want these ones?" Youngjae questioned, and Mark nodded, "You don't have to be afraid to tell me, $30 isn't going to kill me." Youngjae joked, and began moving to go to the checkout.

"Don't forget to get a collar, sir. There's an engraving place next door where you can get the tags." Youngjae nodded, smiling and letting out a breath.

"Sorry," He looked at Mark, "A collar wasn't on my mind at all, I just think of you as a person," He moved over to the back wall, "So a collar just completely slipped my mind.

"You mean..." Mark trailed off.

"Hm?" Youngjae raised a brow.

"Never mind." Mark waved off, and Youngjae nodded.

"You don't have to be afraid to tell me anything, but I understand if you don't want to say. For now, how about you just pick out a collar." Youngjae suggested and Mark looked surprised, again.

"Me? Pick?" Mark questioned and Youngjae nodded, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Well, of course, you're going to be the one wearing it, why would I pick it?" Youngjae questioned, eyebrows furrowing and Mark could see that he was genuine.

Mark looked up at the wall, seeing his options. Youngjae figured if Mark said later that he didn't like his collar, they could just go to a store that specializes in them and just get him one custom made. Matter of fact, Youngjae decided he would do that, but maybe for Mark's birthday, or maybe just a present at random. Either way, he liked the way a personalized collar sounded, and he figured Mark might appreciate the gesture. Mark nervously looked back at Youngjae, who nodded encouragingly, which settled Mark's nerves slightly. He looked at the wall, seeing many colorful and pretty collars. It was almost impossible to decide, but one in particular managed to catch his eyes as soon as he saw it. It was buried behind some of the others, probably because someone else wanted it come and get it later. Well, Mark figured, you snooze you loose. The collar was too pretty for his nerves to say no.

It was a pretty black lace collar, with red ribbon in the middle, decorated with a few tiny red-ribbon bows with a couple small chains looped under the bows. Mark reached up to grab it, his red ears twitching, and he carefully removed it from the rack. Mark smiled a tiny, yet noticeable smile before looking up at Youngjae, as if to ask if it was okay to get. Youngjae simply smiled and nodded lightly, the two of them walking up to the counter, and he placed both items on it. Youngjae got a look on his face, one that resembled the feeling of epiphany that he had. He quickly walked off to an aisle, and Mark was left there, nervous and wide-eyed. Was he abandoning him? Did he not want him? Did he do something wrong? Was it the shoes? The collar? Did he overstep?

"Sorry I just disappeared like that, I just remembered that you needed socks." Youngjae laughed a bit, setting the white socks on the counter, "Oh, I should've let you pick them out. Did you want different ones?"

"N-No, these are fine." Mark said quietly, and Youngjae nodded.

"Alright, what do I need to sign?" Youngjae questioned.

Mark zoned out while Youngjae and the shop lady worked out the legal details. Why was his new owner being so nice to him? Was it all an act? Was he just being nice now, and then when they got home it'd be a completely different story? It was like that with his last owner. He was nice in the store, and in public, but as soon as they were home he was abusive. Mark was scared, and he didn't trust Youngjae yet. It would take longer for Mark to fully trust Youngjae, but so far his new owner didn't seem pushy. He even got to pick out his own collar, something he's never done before. Mark's stomach growled again, and it was more painful this time than last time. He winced and whimpered a bit, something that didn't go unnoticed by Youngjae. Mark wondered how often he'd be able to eat at his new owner's place. With his first owner he got to eat twice a day, but with his last owner he was lucky if he got a meal a day.

Well, whatever happens, he was grateful that Youngjae saved him from a possible hell. He knew what the shop owner's uncle did, he had many hybrid friends that ended up being taken to the storage room, and coming out looking shaken up, crying, and wobbling. Was it really true that Youngjae passed a bill in favor of hybrids? Mark figured if he really did that much, then he couldn't be that bad of a person. Mark still had his guard up, ready for whatever was about to be thrown at him. Mark came back into his own mind just as Youngjae finished the papers, taking the printed copy from the lady. He tucked it between his arm and the side of his chest, handing Mark his shoes and socks, which Mark quickly put on. Mark then picked up his collar, delicately putting it on. Youngjae noticed that everything Mark did just seemed graceful. How do you even gracefully tie shoes? Youngjae didn't know, but Mark managed to accomplish it with ease.

"Well, lets go next door then so we can get your tag, and then we'll go eat." Youngjae offered and Mark nodded.

"O-Okay, Master." Youngjae cringed at the word.

"You don't have to call me that, you know," Mark blinked, "You can just call me Youngjae."

"But-But...You don't want...To be called master?" Mark furrowed his brows, tilting his head.

"No, nononono, you can just call me Youngjae. This isn't," Youngjae paused, taking a breath, "You're not an object, you a person, not a possession."

"Why...Did you buy me then?" Mark questioned.

"Well, I didn't want you going with that uncle, and...I don't know, my house is big, and I guess I'd just like a friend." Youngjae confessed, "Here, we'll talk about it more in the car."

Mark nodded, following Youngjae to the place next door. The tags didn't take that long to make, it was mainly Mark trying to decide on a shape. He finally settled on a heart with the metal colored red, he wanted to match his collar, and black would be too difficult to see the letters. Youngjae asked Mark his last name, but Mark insisted on using Youngjae's last name. Youngjae, being completely oblivious as to why hybrids did that, agreed without really questioning anything. Hybrids usually took on their masters last name as a sign of ownership of sorts. Mark still wasn't sure how to feel about Youngjae, but he gave off a friendly vibe, and he felt like he kind of wanted to take on the others last name, as odd as it might sound for him. Mark didn't usually like taking on his owners last names, but this time was different for some reason. Maybe it was because Youngjae was being so nice to him.

Maybe it was because Youngjae saved him. Either way, Mark didn't really know, but he was glad to be out of that place. Youngjae placed the tag in the small steel split ring meant for something like that. Youngjae felt Mark's breath on his cheek, and he felt himself blush a bit before he moved back, finally getting the tag on. Youngjae thought Mark looked rather cute, with his collar matching his hair and ears. He couldn't help but smile and lead Mark to his car, his hair falling in front of his face a bit. Youngjae opened Mark's door for him, and closed it once he was inside. Youngjae pulled out of his parking space, driving away. He started driving in a direction before realizing he never asked Mark what he liked to eat. He stopped at a red light, which was a perfect opportunity for him to look at Mark to ask him what he liked to eat.

"What do you like to eat?" Youngjae asked.

"Hm?" Mark questioned, ears perking up.

"What do you like to eat, where do you wanna go?" Youngjae questioned again.

"Uuuhh," Mark trailed off, "I...I don't know."

"You don't know?" Youngjae questioned.

"The...The owners I had, and the shop I was in...they never really let me pick, it was just me eating whatever I got." Mark said, now looking down and playing with his hands.

"Well," Youngjae said after a long moment, turning back to the road and driving at the green light, "There's only one way to fix that."

"Hm?" Mark questioned.

"We'll go to my favourite restaurant. It's a little fancy, but there's a bunch of options there, so I'm sure you'll find something you like."

 

* * *

 

 

"Mark, do you know what you want?" Youngjae questioned and Mark nervously shook his head.

"No..." He quietly whispered.

"Well, do any of the pictures look good?" He questioned and mark nervously shrugged.

"I-I don't know." Mark confessed.

"Just get him the usual." Youngjae smiled at the waiter, who nodded his head and took the menus before walking off.

"The usual?" Mark questioned.

"Yeah, it's this like-what was it called?" Youngjae questioned to himself, "Oh! Tilapia, that's what it's called. It's like this fish-"

"Did you just do that because I'm a cat hybrid?" Mark questioned, honestly a little offended.

"Huh? What? No, nononono," Youngjae frantically waved his hands "it's what I usually get. It comes with-why are you looking at me like that?" Youngjae said, eyes now wide.

"Because I don't believe you." Mark said, narrowing his eyes.

"I called it the usual because I usually get it when I come here, and I come here often. They know me, like, on a personal level here," Youngjae frantically explained, falling back into his awkward nature, "Now that I think about it, I guess that's kind of weird.." Youngjae sort of trailed off, "But like yeah, I didn't mean to offend you or anything, if you want like steak or a burrito or something instead, we can get you that, i just figured it'd be easier for everyone if you just got what I got." Youngjae was now rambling.

"Oh," Mark trailed off, not expecting that kind of an answer, "I'm sorry."

"What? No, don't apologize, it's my fault, I should've thought about you more." Youngjae reasoned and Mark shook his head.

"No, I-" Mark began.

"Don't worry about it, it's not a biggie, just a misunderstanding." Youngjae smiled, and Mark nodded.

 

* * *

 

 

"I'm glad you liked dinner." Youngjae smiled as he opened the front door.

"Thank you again, mas-Youngjae." Mark corrected himself.

"I'm sorry it was so late when we left, we'll do the shopping tomorrow," Youngjae closed the door, "But how about I show you around and you can pick a room."

"A room?" Mark questioned.

"Yeah, like your own room. I have so many, I'm sure you'll find one you like." Youngjae laughed, a mixture of nervous and bittersweet.

"Like, all to myself?" Mark questioned.

"Well, of course, where else would you sleep?" Youngjae questioned, clearly confused.

"I've just...never had my own room." Mark confessed and Youngjae knitted his brows.

"Where did you sleep?" Youngjae questioned.

"Sometimes on the floor in my masters room, sometimes in a closet." Mark shrugged.

"A CLOSET?!" Youngjae exclaimed very loudly, nearly scaring the shit out of Mark.

Mark jumped almost ten feet in the air and his tail shot straight up, his ears perking up, his body hunched into itself and his arms close to his chest. A very cat-like pose. Mark almost looked like he wanted to run away, with his eyes wide open. Youngjae suppressed his urge to laugh, not meaning to scare Mark so much. Part of Mark's hair stood up, both making him look cute and only making Youngjae's urge to laugh harder to suppress. He gently waved his hands in front of him, making Mark jump slightly and his eyes darted to Youngjae's hands.

"I-I didn't mean to scare you," Youngjae defended, and Mark looked back up at him with narrowed eyes, "Really! I didn't mean to!"

Mark kept his hard gaze for a moment before his shoulders relaxed a bit and his tail went back to normal. His ears were still fully perked up, and he looked as if he was both ready to pounce and run away at any given moment. Youngjae let out a small laugh, unable to contain himself any longer. Youngjae's always been one to laugh easily, so the fact he made it that far without even a chuckle is a miracle. Mark gave him an angrier look, but it just ended up looking cute. Youngjae just laughed harder, waving his hand in front of him as he threw his head back. Mark found himself strongly resisting the urge to smile himself, Youngjae's laugh being infectious. Youngjae backed up a bit, leaning against the wall as he continued to laugh. Mark ended up turning his back with his hands crossed in order to hide the fact that he was now smiling. Honestly, Youngjae's infectious laugh just wasn't fair.

Youngjae began to calm down, and he wiped the small amount of water from his eyes. Chuckling breathlessly, and almost going into another fit of laughter, but managed to collect himself before that happened.

"Mark, Mark I didn't mean to laugh," Youngjae bit his lip to prevent him from laughing, "It just-you just-I didn't know you could jump that high."

"I'm a cat, of course I can jump that high." Mark sassed, as if it was plain as day (and it was).

"Maaaaark," Youngjae whined, "Mark look at me, I'm sorry."

"No." Mark said firmly.

"Mark pleaaaase." Youngjae begged again.

"Nope." Mark said, standing his ground.

Youngjae carefully and slowly moved his hands to Mark's sides, seizing the older in a tickle. Mark screamed out before laughing, trying to squirm away from Youngjae's grip but failing miserably. His thin hands moved to try to get Youngjae's bigger hands away from him, his knees buckling from all the tickling and laughing. Mark's laugh, just like Youngjae's, was just as infectious and Youngjae found himself laughing along with Mark. Mark squirmed more, but Youngjae was stronger, and it wasn't that hard for him to maintain his tickling assault on Mark. Mark was beginning to have tears brim his eyes from how much he was laughing, something that has never happened to him. Mark soon gave in, and Youngjae smiled triumphantly as he pulled away, and Mark desperately tried to catch his breath (still laughing a bit as he did so). Mark held his sides, starting to calm down a bit, and he looked over at Youngjae.

"What-What was that?" Mark questioned breathlessly.

"You mean my tickling you?" Youngjae questioned.

"Tickling, yes...Don't do that." Mark smiled.

"Why?" Youngjae chuckled, "You seemed to like it." He moved towards Mark, who protectively held himself and pointed a finger at Youngjae.

"No, no I did not." Mark lied his ass off.

"Alright, alright, fine, you win," Youngjae retreated, "Come on, let me show you around."

Mark followed Youngjae, who pointed out the kitchen as they passed by it. There were 4 rooms downstairs (not including the living room), one being Youngjae's office, two being guest rooms, and the last one being a home-theatre of sorts. There were also 2 bathrooms downstairs, so that was nice. Upstairs, there was 5 rooms, all of them being bedrooms, and on the 3rd floor there was two more rooms, followed by an attic bedroom. Youngjae had a room on the 2nd floor, the room furthest to the right. All but three of the rooms had bathrooms attached to them, and that was the attic bedroom and the bedrooms on the first floor. Mark ended up choosing a room that was two rooms away from Youngjae. He still wasn't sure about his new owner, but he felt better than he did before. Mark still wondered what he wanted in return for all of these things. Was it obedience? A playtoy? A maid? Sex?

That must be what Youngjae wanted, sex. That's probably one of the reasons why he was bought, his breed is meant for people who want 'romantic desires'. Mark called it a crock of crap, he didn't know what romantic was, but he was sure that the title was misleading. Mark decided that if sex was what he wanted in return for him being so nice and everything, that Mark would just bear it. Mark couldn't afford to be taken back again and thrown out-or worse. So, Mark felt as if he really had no choice if Youngjae wanted that kind of arrangement. Mark carefully listened to Youngjae as he explained that he can get whatever he wanted at whatever time from the kitchen, and he nodded. Yeah, he definitely wants sex, right? Mark followed Youngjae to the living room, and watched as he sat down and let out a big breath and leaned his head against the couch. Mark hesitated for a moment before straddling him.

"Mm?" Youngjae questioned, eyebrows furrowed.

Youngjae was confused for a moment, but relaxed when Mark put his face in the crook on Youngjae's neck. Youngjae just figured he was probably happy or thankful or something, and just brushed it off as that. Youngjae closed his eyes, feeling quite relaxed after such a stressful day. Mark wrapped his arms around Youngjae's torso, and Youngjae put his arms around Mark's small frame. Youngjae was actually a bit surprised that Mark was getting so comfortable so quickly. Maybe his hard efforts of trying to show Mark that he was a person to him, not an object, really worked. Youngjae smiled to himself a bit, happy with thinking that Mark wasn't seeing himself like that anymore. Hybrids were people, not just fucktoys you can forget about and then come back to when convenient. The fact that people thought like that was absolutely disgusting in every way. He sighed out, feeling himself melt into the couch, until his breath hitched at the feeling of Mark grinding against his crotch.

Youngjae tried to chalk it off as an accident, he probably didn't even realize he did it. He was probably just trying to find a better sitting position. Right? Youngjae tried to go back to relaxing, only to have Mark grind onto his crotch again-harder than before. Okay, that one was deliberate. He could already feel the blood rushing from his head down to his crotch, hormones beginning to cloud his mind. His hands quickly moved to Mark's hips, trying to stop him, but right now he could honestly barely hold himself together so it was no surprise when Mark was able to keep grinding. Youngjae shakily breathed out, trying to contain himself.

"M-Mark," He breathed, "God, Mark what-what are you doing?"

"W-What?" Mark sat up, not stopping his movements.

"Mark-Mark what are you-ohmygod," Youngjae's breathing quickened, "Mark I-I told you I-I-I just," He paused to take a breath, "You don't have to-fuck." His hormone clouded brain made it impossible to get his words out clearly, but luckily Mark caught on.

"You don't want to fuck me?" Mark questioned, halting his movements, and Youngjae grunted out loudly.

How was he even supposed to answer that? Especially right now. Was this question some kind of double edged sword? He says no, Mark gets mad, he says yes Mark gets mad. Okay, it's not that Youngjae didn't want to fuck him right now, because honestly his dick was hard as a rock, he just didn't want to do it under circumstances like this. He didn't bring Mark home to use him as some sort of sex doll, he brought him home because he didn't want Mark to end up on the street. He brought Mark home because Mark deserved to know what it felt like to be treated like he was a person, not a thing. He had a hunch as to why Mark did what he did, and he didn't want Mark to feel like he had to pay him with sex just to keep up what he probably thought was a 'Nice Act'. Youngjae was silent for a moment, and Mark dared to grind one more time and Youngjae hissed out, hands immediately gripping Mark's hips. Youngjae finally opened his eyes to look up at Mark, lust making his vision the slightest bit blurry. Youngjae's face was flustered, a blush tinting his cheeks and the smallest bit of sweat collecting at his hairline. Youngjae's breath was heavy and quick as he almost lazily looked up at mark.

"Mark," He ran a hand up the older's side, "Mark, I told you, you don't have to do that. At all. I told you that you're not an object to me, you're a person. I'm going to treat you like that, I'm going to be nice regardless of if we fuck or not."

Okay, so Youngjae could've worded it a bit more gracefully, but in all fairness, Youngjae could barely think correctly right now. The blood that rushed to his dick had made sure of that, and right now he was focused on not trying to lose control of himself. Truthfully, Youngjae was really dominant in bed and he could be really rough if he wasn't paying attention, and he didn't want to hurt Mark. That, mixed with his morals, is what's making him say no right now.

"So you don't want to fuck me?" Mark questioned again.

"Fuck, I mean, not like this. Not with you feeling like you have to. If it happens later on when we know one another a bit more and you think that's something you really want to do, then sure, but let's think about that then, yeah?" Youngjae rambled out.

Mark quickly got off of Youngjae, face burning and feeling like an idiot for doing that. Now Youngjae had a massive boner he needed to work out that he didn't have before. _Great going, Mark, we managed to make ourself look like an idiot._ Youngjae rolled his eyes back, his head moving back to rest on the couch. He made a sound, somewhere between a grunt and a sigh, trying to get himself together enough to have at least a decent conversation. He calmed himself down a little bit, but fuck now all he can think about is going off into the bathroom to jack off. Youngjae finally opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling for a moment, his breathing not as fast as before. He looked over at Mark, who looked thoroughly embarrassed.

"Hey, I didn't-I didn't mean to make you feel bad," Youngjae moved to touch him but Mark simply moved away, "I'm-I'm sorry."

Mark still avoided eye contact.

"I'm gonna," Youngjae paused, "I'm gonna just go to bed, but you're free to do whatever," He carefully stood up, "If you use the theatre, just don't forget to turn it off when you leave." Youngjae managed to flash a small smile.

Mark glanced up, but looked away quickly after. Youngjae simply sighed and headed upstairs to his own room, so he could get rid of this boner and finally get some sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey yeah i've been wanting to make this for a while and first it was gonna be jackson as the mc, but then i felt too awkward with the idea of writing from his p.o.v. 24/7 so that's how we got here with youngjae as the mc instead. i hope you enjoyed reading this! i've also never written a hybrid au before so if ya got any tips for me they'd be greatly appreciated :') i also may or may not have had the hardest time coming up with a title so fair warning it might change later on if i think the current one is too cringey (can i even do that??? i haven't been writing on here long enough to know if i can do that or not lmao)
> 
> Edit: hi i'm just tweeking the chapters a bit. there's spelling errors, and a few places a should've been more descriptive, along with a few inconsistancies, so i'm just editing the chapters of this story so that they'll be perfect :) -5/28/18


	2. Bambam's Here

It's been nearly a week since what Youngjae is now labeling 'The Incident' happened, and he's barely seen Mark. Not that he really blamed him, I mean he'd probably hold himself up in his room too if the shoe was on the other foot. Still, he couldn't help but feel a bit sad when he'd walk into the kitchen and the two of them would make silent eye contact for a long moment before Mark would scurry off back to his room. This morning, though, he decided to handle things a bit differently. Usually when Mark would run off, he'd just leave him be and continue on with his morning. This morning, he decided he'd make breakfast for the two of them, and then take Mark's plate to his room, like a breakfast-in-bed kinda deal for Mark (Youngjae, of course, wouldn't be eating in Mark's room). Usually he'd knock on the door and let the older know that there was a plate for him in the microwave, and he'd let him get it in his own time. Today was different, and Youngjae figured that if maybe he initiated some form of contact, maybe Mark would be more willing to talk to him.

So, that's how Youngjae ended up in the kitchen with a cookbook propped open, sleeves rolled up, and just finishing up with what he had on the stove. He turned the stove off, carefully easing half of the contents of the pan onto one plate, and copying the action with the other. Youngjae didn't really cook often, seeing as how he was alone before, but now he had an excuse to. Granted, he wouldn't win Master Chef if placed on the show, but he was decent, having been taught by his ex-fiancee. Good enough to where you could taste that he both knew exactly what he was doing, and that he had been doing it for a little while. Youngjae got out the wooden tray, placing the plate on it along with two empty glasses and the necessary silverware. He put orange juice in one and milk in the other. He didn't quite know what Mark preferred to drink in the mornings, and he figured he'd just let Mark pick himself. Youngjae, honestly could go either way, it really depended on his mood. Today he had actually decided on coffee, which was a bit strange given he usually only had coffee when he had to go to work, but he hasn't been sleeping lately.

Youngjae placed a small bowl of yogurt onto the tray as well, and looked over the contents of the tray before picking it up. He had noticed Mark had an addiction to it, because while he wouldn't always eat everything on his plate, big box of yogurt he bought would usually be gone within a few days (a 30 pack of yogurt, mind you). Mark was still really underweight, and that was why he had decided to put more on Mark's plate than his. Youngjae carefully maneuvered up the stairs, easily holding the tray steady. He hoped Mark wouldn't be mad at him or take it the wrong way, Youngjae does things with the best of intentions and usually doesn't mean to hurt anyone. Youngjae wondered if Mark was scared of him, was he just not used to being treated so nice without strings attached? While Youngjae wouldn't call himself acting nice, he just treated Mark how he deserved to be treated. Youngjae decided it'd probably take more than breakfast to get the older to trust him, but he was willing to wait and work for it. Youngjae finally got to Mark's door, and he used the wall to hold the tray up with one hand, so that he could actually knock on the door.

"Mark, it's me, Youngjae." He said, trying to listen for Mark's footsteps.

Silence.

"Mark? Mark, I know you're in there." Youngjae knocked again.

Still silence.

"Are you sleeping?" Youngjae questioned.

Youngjae was silent for a moment, trying to decide what he should do. He didn't want to just leave the food in the kitchen, he was already all the way up here with it. He also wasn't too keen on just waltzing into the room. What if Mark was changing? What if he just didn't want to be bothered? He wasn't comfortable with just invading his space like that, everyone deserves privacy. Youngjae bit his lower lip, humming out gently. Well, he'd just pop in for a second, and if Mark was sleeping he'd just set it down on the nightstand and leave a little note. That was it, and he'd be in there for two minutes max. He felt a bit of uneasiness build up in his stomach at the thought of just inviting himself into someones room, especially Mark's room. Youngjae was raised to be polite and respectful, and that he was (and his parents were very proud of that). It matched well with his naturally awkward personality, but sometimes it often lead to him rambling about how no, he really didn't mean to drop your plate of food on you ma'am, but at least your dress is black. Or unnecessary internal dialogue.

Youngjae had made up his mind, and held in a deep breath before opening the door a little. He peeked in, breathing out in relief when he saw Mark sleeping peacefully on the white sheets. He had meant to go shopping the day after Mark came home, but Mark didn't want to leave his room, and Youngjae wasn't just going to decide what Mark should wear and whatnot. Youngjae grabbed the tray with both hands, unaware that Mark had actually been awake for a while, but was simply faking it because Mark just didn't want to talk to Youngjae. Mark peeked at Youngjae subtly, enough that Youngjae wouldn't notice but he could still see relatively clearly. Mark watched as Youngjae carefully set the food down onto the nightstand, and Mark would be lying his ass off if his said it didn't smell absolutely delicious. His stomach burned when the smell of the food invaded his nose. He watched as Youngjae looked around for a moment, searching for something and smiling when he found it.

Youngjae had been looking for pen and a paper to leave a little note for Mark when he 'woke up'. He went over to the desk in Mark's room, and Mark noticed how domestic he looked. With his pajama shirt sleeves rolled up past his elbow, his hair ever so slightly still messy from having recently woken up. Mark moved a bit, enough to get a better look at him without giving himself away. Mark thought Youngjae had looked rather nice with his sleeves rolled up and his dark hair falling gently in front of his eyes. Youngjae froze for a moment, glancing up at Mark to see if he had woken up. After a moment of Mark not moving, Youngjae let out another relieved breath, and finished up his note. He signed his name, along with putting a smiling face next to it before folding it and placing it under one of the tray's legs. Youngjae took another look at Mark and pulled the covers higher on Mark's frame. It felt oddly comforting to Mark, and he almost actually fell asleep right then, but he managed to catch himself. Youngjae silently left the room with a smile, gently closing the door behind him.

After a moment Mark sat up, blinking and rubbing his eyes. He stayed still for a moment and then sighed, just wanting to lose himself in his thoughts again. Why was Youngjae being so nice to him? Did he really not want anything? Mark, having minimal experience with decent human beings, was having a hard time accepting that. Mark wasn't really comfortable with this new realization either, he was used to the exact opposite, and had began to find himself getting comfortable with knowing exactly what was to come. Now, he didn't know what to expect, he didn't know what Youngjae really wanted (if anything), and he didn't like it. He didn't have any control over the situation, and no way to prepare himself mentally, and the unknown scared him. Why couldn't Youngjae just treat him the way everyone else does? He sighed, but what could he do? Be an ass to Youngjae until Mark gets him to that point? Hey, wait, that's actually a good idea. Mark decided he'd just do that, and then eventually everything would go back to what he was used to. He looked at the tray for a moment before picking up the note.

**_Hi, Mark!_ **

**_If you're wondering where the food came from, it's from me. I came_ **   
**_around your room earlier and you were sleeping, so I didn't want to_ **   
**_wake you up. You need your rest, especially after being treated the_ **   
**_way you were back at the shop. No, worries, I'll just try to catch you_ **   
**_when lunch time rolls around. Anyway, I hope you had a nice rest,_ **   
**_and I hope you like the breakfast I made. I don't know what you like_ **   
**_because we haven't really gotten to know one another, but if you_ **   
**_don't like something on your tray, just let me know so I know not to_ **   
**_give it to you again. I hope you come out of your room soon and_ **   
**_talk to me, I've barely seen you and I just get worried I guess. I_ **   
**_don't want to force you to do anything, though, so if you really_ **   
**_don't want to talk to me, then don't worry about it. My house is_ **   
**_still your house!_ **

**_Enjoy your breakfast!_ **   
**_Youngjae :)_ **

Mark's heart clenched a bit as he read the note; Youngjae was really trying, and Mark could definitely see that, even if he didn't want to admit that Youngjae's intentions were good. It almost made Mark rethink his decision to be so cold to Youngjae, _almost_. Mark unknowingly smiled a bit, safely hiding the note in his nightstand. He had felt a bit happier after reading such a nice note from Youngjae, though he didn't realize that Youngjae was the _reason_ why he had a mood lift. Mark's tail gently whipped from side to side behind him, and Mark decided he'd eat the yogurt first. Mark noticed to two drink glasses on the tray, and he couldn't help but wonder why there was two. Orange juice and milk, why both? Mark remembered what the note said, and figured Youngjae must've brought both because he didn't know what he liked. Mark, of course, preferred the milk but he didn't like admitting it. The last thing he wanted was for someone to make fun of how he was a cat-hybrid who loved milk. Mark finished the yogurt quickly, smiling a bit as he set the now empty bowl down. Yogurt was one of his favourite things, it was like dessert to him (especially when he put stuff inside the yogurt, like those crunchy fish fries Youngjae keeps buying him). He picked up the plate, inspecting the contents.

Mark honestly couldn't tell what was on the plate, seeing as how he lacks in experience with trying new foods, but it smelled good. Whatever was on the plate tasted as good as it had smelled, but Mark only ate half of it before his stomach was at maximum capacity. Mark set the plate back on the tray, wondering how long he should wait before going downstairs to put his plate up. He bit his lower lip, trying to decide if it was okay to just go now. His internal conflict went on for a moment longer before he grew frustrated with himself. He sighed before throwing the covers off of him, he guessed he'd find out when he got down there. He opened his door before going back over to the nightstand and taking the tray in his hands, closing the door with his tail. He quietly treaded downstairs, keeping an ear out for any noises. He heard someone in the kitchen pouring a glass of something, and he figured that was Youngjae. He closed his eyes, letting out a breath before opening them again and putting on a cold face.

"Ah, Mark, I see you're awake now," Youngjae smiled but Mark didn't acknowledge him, "Did you sleep well?"

"Why do you care?" Mark questioned with more attitude than he meant.

"I just worry, is all." Youngjae reasoned, his smile faltering a bit.

"It doesn't matter, it's not like I get to do anything anyway." Mark jabbed.

"Hm? Did you want to go somewhere?" Youngjae asked, perking up.

"No, it's fine, just keep forgetting about me." Mark rolled his eyes, beginning to wash his dishes.

"Well, if there's somewhere you'd like to go, just tell me and we can go." Youngjae offered, and Mark internally cursed.

"Just forget it." Mark sighed.

"Well, we still need to go out to buy you your stuff. I wanted to do it a few days ago, but I haven't really seen you until now." Youngjae informed and Mark scoffed.

"There's a door, you can just come in." Mark jabbed.

"Yeah, but it's wrong of me to just waltz in-" Youngjae started.

"It seems like you had no problem with doing it this morning." Mark shot back.

Silence fell between the two of them, and one of Mark's ears twitched in Youngjae's direction. Youngjae didn't quite know what to say to that, was Mark really upset that he invaded his privacy? Youngjae was now mad at himself, he knew he should've just left the food in the kitchen for Mark to get later. He knew he shouldn't have just walked right in there like he owned the place (well, technically he did, but that's beside the point). Now he was paying the price for being so rude, he deserved it. Mark began to wonder if he made Youngjae mad, which was the aim of his whole act. Mark didn't risk a glace at Youngjae, afraid he'd completely blow his cover. He heard Youngjae get up from the chair, and he had a feeling in the pit of his stomach. This was it, wasn't it? The part where he gets hit for speaking out of turn, or punished for being disobedience. While that was Mark's aim this whole time, he still couldn't help the uneasy feeling inside of him. Mark tensed up a bit as he heard him walking closer to him, preparing himself for what he thought was to come. He held in a big breath, closing his eyes and expecting to be hit.

Much to his surprise, he wasn't. Youngjae had softly placed his hand on Mark's shoulder, and Mark looked up at him with furrowed brows. Why wasn't he being hit? Why wasn't he being punished? Why wasn't Youngjae throwing him against the wall or something? He looked at Youngjae's hand before locking his eyes with Youngjae's. Wasn't he mad? Upset? Pissed off? Why wasn't he fuming?

"I'm sorry I made you upset," Youngjae started, "I should've listened to my better judgement. I was going to leave your breakfast in the kitchen for you to simply get later, but I thought you'd like it better if I just left it on your nightstand."

"What?" Mark questioned.

"I'm apologizing, you have every right to be mad," Youngjae reassured, "I should never have invaded your personal space, it won't happen again. I'm sorry."

Mark could hardly believe it, he was left completely speechless, he treats Youngjae like shit and he STILL apologizes to him? Is there no making this man angry? Mark figured he would just have to try harder, a lot harder. What was he supposed to say to that? This is the exact opposite outcome that he was wanting, let alone hoping for. Can someone really be that patient and understanding? He began to feel bad for being so mean to Youngjae in the first place, but he knew that it was for the best for both of them. Wasn't it? Was Mark really better off being so cold to him if Youngjae was going to be like this? Of course it was, there's no need for second guessing. He simply took to rolling his eyes and scoffing.

"Right, I'm sure you'll do it again, anyway." Mark uttered out.

"No, I won't do it again unless you tell me to, I promise," Youngjae moved his hand to rest in between Mark's shoulders, "I want you to see that you can trust me."

"That's what they always say, and then next thing I know I'm locked in a closet." Mark said coldly.

"Hey," Youngjae 's eyebrows furrowed, "Hey look at me."

"What?" Mark said, making eye contact.

"I would never, ever do that to you," Youngjae said seriously, "It makes me sick thinking of it, you have a room and my house is your house too. You're welcome to anything here, I promise."

"Okay, if you say so." Mark shrugged it off, but he was honestly touched.

 

* * *

 

 

Youngjae was in the living room, watching T.V. and Mark was snooping around in Youngjae's room. He was just curious about Youngjae is all, but he couldn't exactly go down there and just have a conversation with him. Well, he could, but it'd completely blow his cover, and he couldn't do that. So far, all he's learned is that Youngjae really likes origami and has a suspicious drawing of an evil cucumber in his desk drawer. The other desk drawers were locked though, much to his dismay. So, he was currently looking through Youngjae's nightstand, trying find something interesting (and maybe something Mark could use against him, but shh don't tell anyone). His efforts were paid off with a photo album, and a small amount of excitement bubbled in him. He perked up his ears, seeing if Youngjae was nearby, or heading this way. Mark was curious, not stupid, and didn't want to get caught (hence him snooping). He wasn't, in fact Youngjae was walking in the opposite direction, and was still downstairs. Fantastic. Mark softly sat on Youngjae's bed, beginning to flip through the photo album.

There was the typical stuff; baby pictures, photos of family and friends, pictures of when he first bought the house. Then, there was something that caught his eyes. There was a couple of blank pages before there was photos of him with a woman. He found it weird, why not just have it in order? His eyebrows furrowed has he flipped through the album. There were pictures of him and her eating ice cream, another of the ice cream on her nose, another of her on the beach making a giant sand castle. There was one of her posing right next to Micky Mouse, and Mark assumed the two of them had went to Disneyland or something. There were quite a few photos of him and this woman, and he stopped wondering who she was when his eyes landed on a particular photo. In the picture Youngjae was stick his tongue out on her cheek, and her nose was scrunched up. They must be together, but why hasn't he seen her around? Did they break up or something? He flipped the album, seeing a photo of her crying and them holding up their hands that now had rings on them.

They were married? Engaged? Mark looked over, seeing the rings taking up a place where another photo would be, and the top sown shut (which Mark found very weird, in all honesty). Why are they right there? Shouldn't they be on their fingers? Mark never really understood human customs. He carefully flipped the page, seeing another photo with the girl holding up a flower to her nose, and in the slot next to it was the pressed and dried version of the flower. Did they break up? Seems awful weird to keep all of this stuff if they've broken up. If you break up with someone, don't people usually just give the other back their stuff and forget about them? Mark was going to turn another page when his ears perked up at a noise, he froze as he focused on his hearing, zoning out on the wall in front of him. Youngjae was coming up the stairs, which meant mark needed to get out of there asap. Mark quickly put the photo book back, closing the door and using his hybrid speed to get the hell out of there and safely into his room. He quickly shut his door, which could be heard by Youngjae who was only on the first few steps.

Honestly, the more Mark thought about it the more he got creeped out by it. Maybe he just really liked her.

 

* * *

 

 

Youngjae sighed, rubbing his forehead as he talked with Jackson. It's been a good 5 days since the breakfast thing happened, and it seemed like the harder the tried the further away he got. To say he was stressed was an understatement. Youngjae already had a lot of stress on him; work, company meetings, making business deals, trying to get more change and rights for hybrids, and now Mark. He sighed, feeling completely defeated. He had been trying so hard and nothing was working, but what more could he do? Mark could hear every word he was saying with his hybrid hearing, even though Youngjae thought he was being quiet. Every word cut into Mark, but it wasn't enough to make him stop the act he was doing. Jackson was Youngjae's best friend, as well as one of the only people who's been there for him since he was a kid. He ran a hand through his hair, tugging at the strands lightly. He's barely gotten any sleep over the past few days, and it was definitely showing. If you took one look at him for even a brief moment, you'd be able to tell, and his coworkers were beginning to worry about him.

Unfortunately, that's just how Youngjae gets when he's too stressed. He can't sleep, he loses his appetite, which just adds to his stress and it becomes a never ending cycle until either he passes out or he gets rid of the thing that's making him so stressed. Since getting rid of Mark isn't even a considerable option, it looks like he'll just have to wait until he ends up passing out on the couch for a day and a half.

"I don't know, Jackson, I really don't think he likes me." Youngjae sighed.

"Maybe he just misses his hybrid friends?" Jackson offered.

"I-I don't know, when I saw him in the shop he didn't look like he really talked to anyone." Youngjae stumbled.

"That doesn't mean he didn't have friends." Jackson pointed out.

"Right, right, you're right," Youngjae said, feeling like an idiot, "God, I'm such an asshole."

"No, hold on, don't go blaming yourself Youngjae," Jackson interjected, "You always do that to yourself, stop it."

"Then who's fault is it? It isn't his, it's not his fault he was treated so badly and can't trust people, Jackson." Youngjae angrily rambled.

"It's his previous owners' faults, right along with that shop owner and the uncle." Jackson reasoned.

"Well, I can't really argue there." Youngjae admitted, his head resting in his hand as he looked down at the covers.

"Hey, I could bring Bambam over. He's a bit hyper today, he keeps complaining that he doesn't have any friends." Jackson offered, "Maybe the two of them will connect, and that way Bambam gets out his energy, and Mark gets a friend."

"Hasn't he made friends with like literally all of our coworkers' hybrids, and everyone else he sees?" Youngjae asked with a small chuckle.

"Yeah, but his excuse is he doesn't have any 'real friends', whatever that means." Jackson said, and you could hear his amusement.

"JACKSOOOOOON, I'M BOOOOORED." Youngjae could hear Bambam whine.

"I know, I know, I'm trying to set something up." Jackson said distantly.

"BUT I WANNA DO SOMETHING!" Bambam exclaimed.

"Stop running so fast! You're going to hurt yourself!" Jackson exclaimed.

"Ugh, you hate me!" Bambam said before a loud thud was heard.

"Bambam has officially thrown himself on the floor, please help me out here, Youngjae" Jackson almost begged.

"Alright, he can come over, I'll see if Mark wants to meet him. If not, I guess I can keep him occupied with the game room." Youngjae reasoned.

"Oh my god I could kiss you-" Jackson began.

"KISS ME INSTEAD!" Bambam suddenly yelled.

"Bambam! I told you not to say things like that when I'm on the phone!" Jackson exclaimed, and Youngjae laughed.

"But I wanna kiiiiiiissss." Bambam continued to whine.

"Okay, I'm gonna let you go-" Jackson said.

"Pay attention to me! I need affection or I'll die!" Bambam dramatically exclaimed.

"Okay, I'm getting off the phone now, see!" Jackson exasperatedly said before the line went dead.

Youngjae shook his head gently, smiling setting his phone on the nightstand. He enjoyed the antics of Jackson and Bambam, they were like a walking sitcom. His phone brightened and he looked over at it, seeing the text message notification. Jackson said he'd be here in around 15 minutes, which usually meant 25 because Bambam always spent 10 minutes cuddling with Jackson (and whining too, but don't let Bambam hear you say that). He sighed, feeling a headache coming on. This had to go well, because if he didn't Youngjae just might end up crying into a bowl of cornflakes at 3 in the morning. He rubbed his temples with his eyes closed, trying to relieve his headache before it got any worse. Youngjae had really tried everything he could, and he even managed to rope Mark out of the house and out to a few stores to buy Mark the things he both needed and wanted (even if Mark was reluctant on telling him what he wanted, Youngjae could still tell). Mark picked out new bed sheets too, after being encouraged by Youngjae, along with other things to personalize his room more. Youngjae's room was simple, yet it was him.

His walls were a pale blue, with dark hardwood floors that matched the hallway. His bed sheets were black and red, and the window curtains matched the main colors of the room (black, red, and pale blue). He liked having consistency in his room, and he liked having things match. Youngjae found a lot of comfort in his room, it was a safe space for him, personalized with all the things he liked. He wanted Mark to feel the same about his room too. Nobody deserves to feel like they have nowhere to run to so they can escape. He took another breath before deciding he should probably tell Mark. He managed to stand up, his feet carrying him to Mark's door, and before he could knock the door was already being swung open.

"What do you want?" Mark said, and when he looked up he could see it.

He could see the exhaustion and stress on his face, yet Youngjae still managed to flash a small smile.

"My friend Jackson is coming over, and he has a fox hybrid named Bambam-" Youngjae began.

"And let me guess, you think that just because I'm a hybrid that I should talk to my own kind?" Mark accused, knowing that wasn't it.

"No, no no no," Youngjae said gently while shaking his head, "Bambam just gets really hyper and could use an actual friend, and I thought you two might get along."

"Why? Because we aren't human?" Mark falsely accused again.

"No, that's not it-" Youngjae began.

"Bambam doesn't deserve human friends because he's a hybrid?" Mark accused again.

"Mark, for God's sake no-" Youngjae tried again, becoming a little agitated.

"Oh, so then you think that I don't deserve human friends?" Mark questioned, eyebrow raised.

"Mark, that's not-" Youngjae raised his voice, but stopped himself when he saw Mark flinch.

Youngjae closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose, feeling like the biggest asshole in the entire universe. The heavens could just open a crater to Hell and throw him in right now. He was stressed out like a one couldn't believe, but that was no reason for him to take it out on Mark. Like he told Jackson on the phone, it's not Mark's fault he can't trust people easily. He put a hand on his hip as he put his head down, thoroughly embarrassed with himself. Guilt was quickly eating at him, and he moved both of his hands to rub his face. He sighed again, letting one hand fall to his side, and another run through his hair. He looked at Mark, who had a mixture of emotions etched on his face. Youngjae felt like an ass for scaring Mark like that, especially after everything he's been through. Youngjae wanted to end up closer to Mark by the time the day was out, but it looks like he's only father away. Again. Surprise, surprise, he just can't do anything right, can he? Mark didn't know Youngjae was so frightening when his voice was raised, and he didn't dare wonder how scary he'd look when he was yelling or actually fully pissed off.

It was what he wanted though, and he almost felt like he was making some headway. Mark could already see how guilty Youngjae, and Mark was beginning to really feel like shit for making him look and feel so terrible. Youngjae looked like he could fall over at any second and just never wake up, and Mark began to think that maybe this isn't the best thing for either of them (which his conscience had kept telling him since he started his act, but who needs a conscience, anyway).

"I'm-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have yelled." Youngjae apologized.

"You do-" Mark began.

"I've just been under a lot of stress, but I shouldn't have taken it out on you. I understand if you don't want to go down and meet Bambam, he'll be disappointed, but I'm sure he'll understand." Youngjae flashed another tired smile.

"Youngj-" Mark tried again.

"I'm going to go make a kind of late lunch, it's like 4 pm but I don't want them to go home on an empty stomach. You're more than welcome to join, it'll be nice to see you eating." Youngjae continued.

"I'll meet him." Mark said before he could be interrupted again.

"I don't want you to feel forced, but he'll be really happy. You're looking a lot healthier, Mark," Youngjae pointed out, "You don't look underweight anymore, it's nice to see you so healthy."

Mark nodded, not knowing how at ease it really put Youngjae to know he wasn't underweight anymore.

"Just don't expect me to like it." Mark said, remembering he had an image to uphold.

"Don't worry, if you want to come back to your room at any time, you're more than welcome to. I'm not going to stop you." Youngjae said before walking away.

Mark hesitated for a moment before closing his door, genuinely concerned about Youngjae. Youngjae worked on dinner, making something easy because he really wasn't in the state to be making complicated dishes. Really, he shouldn't even be cooking right now, but he wasn't going to have everyone go hungry just because he was tired. While lunch was cooking, Youngjae set up the table in the meantime. He gave everyone water, except for Bambam. Bambam got a glass of apple juice because, above all things, Bambam loved juice. More specifically, apple juice. Youngjae was sure that Bambam's DNA was at least 50% apple juice, and anyone who told him otherwise is a dirty liar. Youngjae shook his head with a small smile as he thought of the antics of the younger. Bambam was clingy and dramatic, but those were some of the best things about him. Bambam also had the biggest heart out of everyone that Youngjae's met, and he's met a lot of people. Bambam loved being around people, thriving off of the attention and praise he would receive (mostly from Jackson, because Jackson is the president of the Bambam Enthusiast Club).

Bambam was easily the sweetest person he knew, even if he was a little shit sometimes (it was mostly harmless, but still). Like that one time Bambam put saran wrap on the doorway and yelled for Youngjae to come in, only for Youngjae to look like an idiot when he ran into the saran wrap. Still, he wouldn't want Bambam to be any other way. Surprisingly, when Jackson first introduced him and Bambam, he seemed like he wouldn't open up quickly. Boy, was that the wrongest he's ever been. Bambam trusted easily, and Youngjae hoped that never came back to bite him in the ass. Youngjae was happy for Jackson and Bambam, Jackson had Youngjae's mindset when it came to hybrids; they were people, not objects. Youngjae knew Bambam was in good hands, especially since he gets almost anything he asks for.

"YOUNGJAAAAAEE!!" He heard Bambam yell before he was attacked by a weight on his back, making him stumble.

"OOF-Bambam! It's nice to see you!" Youngjae said, stabilizing himself.

"Hmm," Bambam rubbed his cheek on Youngjae's neck, "I bet you missed me."

"I did, it was so boring without you here." Youngjae said with a smile.

"See, Jackson! Told you he missed me!" Bambam said smugly.

"Bambam, I don't think Mark will appreciate you scent-marking Youngjae." Jackson warned.

"I don't smell anyone else on him, someone's gotta mark him." Bambam said as if it was the most obvious thing ever.

"Bambam, we talked about this-" Jackson began.

"But he's my Youngjae!" Bambam whined, looking back at Jackson.

"No, he's Mark's Youngjae." Jackson tried to explain, and Bambam hopped off Youngjae's back.

"Well, if he was really Mark's, how come I couldn't smell his scent on him?" Bambam defended and Youngjae laughed a little, stirring the pan.

"I missed you two being around here," Youngjae shook his head with a smile, "It was too quiet without you two."

"See, Youngjae-hyung doesn't mind." Bambam pouted, hugging Youngjae from behind now.

"That's **_not_   **what he said-" Jackson began again.

"I'm sure Mark doesn't care, he doesn't really like me." Youngjae dismissed, turning the stove off.

"WHAT?! Who couldn't like you, you're so nice," Bambam pouted, "And you give me plushies all the time."

"Yes, Bambam, let's boil Youngjae down to nothing but material things, why not." Jackson rolled his eyes, playfully nitpicking.

"Jackson, if you want I could boil you with my-" Bambam began another innuendo.

"It's fine, don't worry about it Bambam," Youngjae smiled and turned around, hugging the younger properly (successfully changing the topic before it escalated), "I'm sure it's nothing, he's really nice though. He's almost as nice as you."

"Almost." Bambam smiled smugly.

Bambam was a bit of an attention hog, and if he couldn't get any from Jackson (who had ignored him temporarily just so they'd get here in time), then he certainly could get it from Youngjae. Youngjae, admittedly, had a really soft heart for Bambam, he was like the nephew he never had (or like his tiny little son, he couldn't decide). More often than not, Youngjae found himself spoiling Bambam rotten with many protests from Jackson. Which was hypocritical, because Jackson did the exact same thing, the only difference is that on a legal document Bambam is his (which literally nobody really paid attention to unless they had to). Youngjae still isn't sure what's going on between the two of them, he can't figure out if they're a couple or if they have a different dynamic going on (maybe like an 18+ Tom & Jerry thing, he didn't know). Youngjae opened one of the kitchen drawers and got out a couple pot holders and closed the drawer again. He moved over to the table while Jackson and Bambam argued, setting the potholders on the table. He then moved to the stove, carrying the pots and the pan over one by one.

It wasn't that difficult, he just had two pots and one pan, and the ridiculous argument that was taking place distracted him enough that he didn't feel tired anymore. He pulled out the chairs that they were going to use before moving past the two to head upstairs. He was sure Mark had already heard that he was done and can hear him coming up the stairs, and he probably could've just called Mark from the kitchen, but he wasn't raised to do that. Plus, after he raised his voice and scared Mark like that, he felt he should be a bit more personal with things. He moved to knock on the door, only to have it open before he could. He flashed a smile and Mark raised a brow.

"Hey, they're here and I just finished-" Youngjae started.

"Dinner, yeah, I know. I'm coming." Mark said and Youngjae nodded.

"Okay, would you like anything to drink besides water?" Youngjae questioned, and Mark shook his head.

"I don't want anything from you." Mark said before closing the door and Youngjae sighed.

Right, Youngjae almost forgot that Mark hates him.

Youngjae shook his head at himself, rubbing his temples as he quickly descended the stairs. Well, dinner is bound to go better, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm back with a new chapter and honestly i didn't expect to get such positive feedback so quickly omg thank y'all sm it really does mean a lot :') it makes my soft heart go uwu
> 
> Edit: hello owo if u didn't read my edit on the chapter before this, then I'm just editing the chapters because they have spelling errors, some inconsistencies, and just little things like that. alrighty, that's all, have a good day!! -5/28/18


	3. Mine

Youngjae sat at the table with Jackson and Bambam, who immediately noticed his apple juice. Bambam's fluffy tail flicked happily and he drank the juice out of the straw that was in the cup. Bambam had dubbed it his 'Special Straw' last time he was over, and had told Youngjae from then on he was going to be using it every time he came over. Youngjae and Jackson thought it was cute, but Youngjae saw it more innocently while Jackson just practically fawned over every cute thing Bambam did. Not that Youngjae could blame him, Bambam was absolutely adorable and it took everything Youngjae had not to just spoil him absolutely rotten. Youngjae and Jackson got to talking while they waited for Mark to come to the table so they could eat. Jackson noticed how tired he looked, and questioned Youngjae about it, who had no choice but to quietly confess to Jackson about how stressed he's been and all the events that have been the cause of his stress. Jackson, having knowing Youngjae since elementary school, knew how Youngjae got when he was too stressed out. It worried him, but there wasn't much he could do about it other then tell him to try to sleep.

"So Mark's got you that stressed out, huh?" Jackson questioned and Youngjae shook his head.

"No, it's not his fault, I just keep doing things wrong." Youngjae said, looking down at the table.

"Well, hopefully tonight goes well, and maybe he won't be so mad at you anymore." Jackson offered and Youngjae shrugged.

"Honestly, even if it doesn't go well, what am I gonna do?" Youngjae rhetorically asked, "Nothing, there's nothing I can do. I've tried everything, and it's just not good enough. I think I just need to accept the fact that I'm a terrible person and just move on."

"Youngjae, you're not a bad person, you're the best person I know." Jackson encouraged.

"Really?" Youngjae questioned, now looking up at him.

"Well, yeah, you got that bill passed and I don't know another CEO who's managed to do that." Jackson said and Youngjae smiled a bit.

"Yeah, maybe I'm not so bad after all." Youngjae commented, his morale up a bit.

Youngjae got up and refilled Bambam's apple juice, and Bambam just smiled at him. As he put the juice back up he saw Jackson ruffle Bambam's hair and scratch a spot behind his ear. Bambam's eyes slowly shut, and his head tilted in Jackson's direction, his shoulders hunching a bit. Bambam had a small smile on his lips, and Jackson just looked at him with adoration. Youngjae smiled to himself at the small interaction, Jackson obviously knowing Bambam better than Bambam knew himself. Youngjae placed Bambam's juice in front of him and moved back to his chair, but the younger didn't notice due to Jackson's movements. Bambam balled Jackson's shirt into his fist gently, nudging against Jackson's hand. Bambam did a movement with his head and his ear flicked, he quickly moved into Jackson's neck rubbing his cheek against Jackson's exposed skin, scent-marking him even more than he already had. Bambam looked up at Youngjae through hazy eyes as Jackson kept scratching that one spot that Bambam very evidently loved. Youngjae faintly heard a small noise coming from Bambam, and Youngjae could only compare it being similar to a cat's purr.

Bambam's tail flicked about, and he just nestled himself further into Jackson, his back pressed against Jackson's chest. Youngjae saw Mark descending the stairs and he flashed a smile at him once he started walking to the table. Mark, naturally, ignored him and took his place beside Bambam, who hazily looked at him with glossed eyes. He waved gently, clearly out of his own mind right now with Jackson scratching that one spot so much. Youngjae raised a brow at Jackson, who took that as a sign to quit incapacitating Bambam and let him eat. Jackson moved his hand down to Bambam's hip, earning a whine from the infamous Bambam. Mark scrunched his nose for a moment, but he stopped before Youngjae could question it.

"Come on, you need to eat." Jackson urged.

"I'll just eat you-" Bambam started.

" _Bambam_! I told you not to say that stuff when we go outside the house." Jackson said and Bambam just laughed.

"Sorry." Bambam apologized, sitting up.

"You know, for some reason, I don't think you are," Jackson said and Bambam just smiled, "I knew it."

"It's just so fun~" Bambam said in a singing tune.

"Bambam, this is Mark." Youngjae said, changing the topic before it got too far.

"Oh, hi, I'm Bambam." Bambam waved.

"Yeah, Youngjae said that." Jackson teased.

"Shut up." Bambam looked back at Jackson, hitting his chest.

"Ow." Jackson mumbled.

"That's what you get for misbehaving." Bambam said and Jackson raised a brow.

"Me?" Jackson questioned and Bambam nodded, "What about you?"

"I don't count, I'm cute." Bambam reasoned, looking back at Mark.

"Naturally, how could I forget." Jackson shook head head, trying not to smile.

"Hi." Mark did a small wave.

"I like you already, you're cute." Bambam said confidently and Mark blushed, his eyes widening a bit.

"Uh, thank-thank you." Mark stumbled, caught off guard.

"You're welcome." Bambam smiled.

It was silent for a moment before Mark moved closer to Bambam, sniffing him a few times. Mark's nose scrunched, eyes squinting in suspicion at a completely oblivious Bambam, who was busy trying to get Jackson to give him a kiss before they ate dinner. Jackson, however, was telling Bambam he'd get one after if he ate his food. Naturally, this posed as a problem for Bambam. Eventually, they settled on Bambam getting one now, and then two more if he ate all of his food. Youngjae noticed Mark though, and seemed to be the only one who did. He wondered what on earth the oldest was doing, and before Youngjae could say anything, Mark sat back in his chair. Mark still eyed Bambam suspiciously, and Youngjae just chalked it off as a hybrid thing, kind of like the scent-marking thing. Youngjae interrupted Jackson and Bambam's mini-argument, instructing them to eat. Youngjae let everyone else dig in first before he got in own plate, smiling a bit as he saw Mark take a bite of his food. He didn't get as much as he normally would, stress decreasing his appetite significantly.

He quietly ate his food, letting the three of them talk between one another. He didn't want to ruin the mood, and he knew if he opened his mouth then Mark would just crawl back into his room after giving a very angry and probably sarcastic remark about how Youngjae was an asshole. It was a miracle that he even came out of his room in the first place, and he didn't want to be in the way of Mark making friends with his friends. Though, he did catch Mark looking at him every once in a while. He kicked around one of the veggies with his chopsticks as he lost himself in his thoughts. Mark seemed to be getting along with Bambam wonderfully, their opposite personalities actually meshing together well. Mark and Bambam were now hugging one another, clinging to each other as if they'd known one another for years. After a few more minutes passed, Bambam managed to drag Mark outside to play with him. Mark was hesitant at first, not having really explored the backyard at all, but it's hard to resist Bambam when he gives you The Eyes. Bambam squeaked in happiness, taking Mark by his hand and running off to go outside. Jackson smiled as he watched Bambam disappear around the corner. Youngjae picked at his food a bit more, managing to eat half of what he put on his plate. At least Mark didn't complain about the food, so maybe that's a good sign.

"He doesn't seem like he hates you." Jackson commented.

"That's because I didn't say anything." Youngjae said and Jackson furrowed his brows.

"Now that you mention it, you didn't say a single word." Jackson realized and Youngjae nodded.

"Mark just seemed like he was getting along with Bambam so well, I didn't want to ruin it." Youngjae said with a sigh.

"You should try talking to him, maybe he'll give you a shot because I'm here." Jackson tried.

"And why is that?" Youngjae questioned, looking at him with a raised brow.

"Because I'm an acquaintance, and people tend to be a bit more cautious around those they don't know yet." Jackson reasoned.

"Mark'll surprise you." Youngjae said and Jackson sighed.

"Just try to talk to him, maybe if he snaps I can try to figure out why." Jackson said and Youngjae considered it.

"Why? Are you an expert now?" Youngjae questioned in an amused tone.

"Well, considering I work at a shelter for hybrids, I'd like to think so." Jackson said with a smile.

"Hybrid Whisperer Jackson." Youngjae said dramatically.

"Damn straight-" Jackson was interrupted.

"Too bad you're not." Youngjae said and laughed at Jackson's reaction.

"I'm as straight as an arrow!" Jackson slammed his hand on the table.

"Yeah, a turnaround arrow." Youngjae continued laughing, and Jackson couldn't help but smile.

Youngjae's laugh was truly infectious, and Jackson couldn't help but let out a small laugh of his own. Meanwhile, Mark could faintly hear Youngjae laughing inside the house, and he smiled a little. He decided then and there that he loved Youngjae's laugh, but he'd never admit it out loud (at least not where other people could hear). Mark quite liked Bambam but there was a problem: something in the house smelled too much like him. Mark had come to a conclusion inside; Bambam obviously scent-marked something in that house. Mark wasn't that bothered by it really, as he thought Bambam might've just marked an object like a pillow or something. All Mark needed to do was figure out what it was so that he could either throw it away, or re-mark it as his. Whichever option is the most convenient for him at the time. Bambam smelled like flowers after morning rain and coconut, while Mark smelled like jasmine tea and honey. Youngjae smelled like cinnamon and a windy October evening, and Jackson smelled like the an ocean breeze on a cool summer afternoon and lemonade. Mark and Youngjae's scents meshed well together, just like Jackson and Bambam's scents meshed well together. Usually he found comfort in Youngjae's scent, but for some reason he couldn't smell it at the table.

Maybe it was because Mark was just too far away, maybe it was because the thing Bambam scent marked was nearby, who knows. All he could smell was Bambam, and that's one of the reasons why he actually agreed to come outside. While yes, he did find Bambam's pleading eyes irresistible, what really won him over was the fact that outside didn't smell like Bambam. Outside smelled like outside, and there's no way Bambam could make the outdoors smell like him because the space is just too big. He didn't tell Bambam any of that though, afraid he might take it as some kind of challenge (and Bambam definitely would). Currently, the two were having fun outside, the issue with Bambam having marked something at the back of Mark's mind. Bambam had a knack for getting people really hyper really quickly, especially hybrids, and Mark was no exception. Soon, Mark was darting with hybrid speed from one end of the yard to the other, chasing a ball that Bambam kept throwing. Then Mark found out that Bambam didn't throw it the last few times, which ended up with Mark tackling the younger to the ground with a battle-cry.

Youngjae poked his head out of the sliding glass door, hearing Mark's battle cry and wondering if everything was okay. Or rather, if Bambam was okay, because he had never heard that come out of Mark before and he was sure Bambam was going to get his ass kicked. He was pleasantly surprised to find Mark straddling Bambam, hitting him lightly with the ball he was chasing earlier. Youngjae smiled, happy to see the two of them getting along so well. Bambam surrendered and Mark finally looked up to acknowledge Youngjae's presence.

"What?" Mark questioned.

"I heard your warrior cry and I wanted to make sure everything's alright." Youngjae informed with a smile and Mark nodded.

"Yeah, everything's peachy." Mark sassed and Youngjae nodded.

"Well, Jackson's convinced me to take out the cheesecake so-" Youngjae started.

"CAKE?!" Bambam exclaimed.

"Hmm, well I don't know now, you seem to be having just so much fun-" Youngjae began to tease.

"Youngjaeeee," Bambam whined, "That's not faaair."

"Are you sure? You just-" Youngjae started again.

"Youngieee," Bambam used his nickname for the other as he pouted, "Bamie wants cheesecake." Bambam looked at him with big eyes.

"Okay, okay, come on in then. Better hurry before Jackson eats-" Youngjae started to tease again.

Within a split second Bambam had moved himself from under Mark to right inside the house. A small delayed breeze followed Bambam, along with the sliding glass door softly hitting the other side of the wall. Youngjae raised his brows, looking behind him to follow Bambam, but the younger was already in the kitchen, probably giving Jackson a bit of hell. He broke out into a smile as he heard Jackson's protests of 'No Bambam, you don't deserve cheesecake,' followed by Bambam's carefully and intelligently constructed, 'Fuck off, I'm having cheesecake,' and Youngjae laughed. His head leaned back gently, revealing his Adam's apple, an action that didn't go unnoticed by Mark. Youngjae's teeth were full display as he laughed, and it was then that Mark took in his facial features more. Mark blushed as he remembered just how attractive Youngjae was and he crossed his arms over his chest, and looked away for a moment as he felt his cheeks burning. He took a moment to compose himself before he looked back at Youngjae, mad at both Youngjae and himself for blushing like he did. Youngjae took a breath, calming his laugh down but still smiling when he made eye contact with Mark again.

"You coming in?" Youngjae asked mark, who rested on the back of his legs.

"Yeah, but I'm cutting it myself." Mark shot as he stood up and Youngjae nodded.

"Sure, okay, I already set plates out beside the container." Youngjae informed Mark, who was about to push past him.

Until he froze, his nose twitching a few times as he smelled the air. It was that strong scent of coconut and flowers after rain, and Mark's eyes narrowed as the realization slowly hit him. Did that fox just scent-mark Youngjae? **_His_ ** Youngjae?! Youngjae just stared at Mark, completely clueless and not sure what was going on. Mark stepped closer to Youngjae, until his nose almost touched the dip in Youngjae's neck. Mark sniffed again before his nose scrunched, and he moved a hand to cover it and used his other to push Youngjae away. This only furthered Youngjae's cluelessness and wondered what exactly he had done to make Mark upset now. Youngjae stumbled back, managing to catch himself on the nearby sofa so he wouldn't fall, and he looked back at Mark with the most clueless and innocent look on his face. Mark, however, was fuming (and you could definitely tell). It was actually a pretty frightening sight, and if Youngjae was anyone else, he'd probably be scared shitless. Youngjae knew, however, that Mark wouldn't actually hurt him (well, he hoped, anyway).

Mark stepped into the house, looking completely disgusted and absolutely pissed. Youngjae held his hands out in front of him, laughing awkwardly as Mark looked around for the culprit. Okay, sure, Mark was supposed to hate Youngjae, but that was still **_HIS_ ** Youngjae to hate and nobody else was allowed to hate him or claim him because that's **_HIS_ ** Youngjae. Bambam didn't have any right to scent-mark him like that, and now Mark's facade of hatred was washed away by a territorial anger. He settled his eyes on Youngjae, stepping over to him.

"You smell like Bambam." Mark accused and Youngjae let out a breath.

"Dear Christ, that's it," Youngjae put a hand on his chest, "I thought you were going to kill me"

" _That's it_? That's it, _really_? You're not supposed to smell like Bambam," Mark ranted, "If there's anyone you should smell like it should be _ME_."

"You literally hate me, I figured it wouldn't matter that much." Youngjae reasoned with a small voice.

"I don't care, you're still MINE." Mark said possessively.

"Youngjae-hyung-" Bambam said.

"YOU!" Mark snapped his head in Bambam's direction, who now had wide eyes.

"M-Me?" Bambam pointed to himself, ears tucking behind him and lowering as his tail lowered to his legs.

"Yes, you! You scent-marked him!" Mark accused and Bambam stood there silently for a moment before running away to where Jackson was.

"JACKSON!" Bambam exclaimed, sounding terrified.

" _Get back here_!" Mark ran off at inhuman speed.

Bambam quickly ran over to Jackson, jumping on his back, and nearly scaring the shit out of him. Jackson quickly steadied himself, ready to give Bambam a sarcastic remark, when he saw Bambam's face. The poor hybrid looked genuinely frightened, clinging to Jackson as if it meant life or death, and Jackson's eyebrows furrowed. What has him so scared? He put one of his hands on one of the legs that Bambam had wrapped around him, trying to comfort him. He quietly questioned Bambam with a soft voice, and Bambam hid his face in Jackson's neck as he quietly explained. Jackson knew something like that would probably happen, things like that happen frequently at the shelter he worked at. While, granted, it's not usually with people (obviously), it's usually with stuffies or other possessions. Even if the hybrid doesn't even use the stuffed animal they've scent-marked anymore, if another tries to mark it you might as well just consider it World War III. It's kind of like a 'no matter what, this particular thing is always mine,' kind of a thing going on.

Well, it's a bit more complicated than that, but Jackson really didn't have the time to be having that kind of internal dialogue. Bambam's never really been one to get into physical fights or get genuinely angry, a trait Jackson liked very much because he was similar in that aspect, unless it involved Jackson himself. Like that one time Jackson took Bambam to work with him, and this lady came in and wanted to adopt a hybrid for 'personal pleasures'. When Jackson told her to leave and that she was banned from coming back, she slapped him, and Bambam's immediate instinct was to take the cup of cold coffee and throw it on her. Bambam's ears were still tucked into his hair, almost camouflaged, and his tail was tucked into his side. Jackson saw Mark flash into the kitchen, and he sighed, starting to explain the whole situation like the grown man he is. Mark, however, wasn't listening in the slightest, and was now hissing at Bambam. Bambam whimpered, hiding himself into Jackson more. Jackson's had training in situations like these, and was usually the one to break up the fights at the shelter, so it was no surprise when it started kicking in. He held his arm out in front of himself to help prevent Mark from getting any closer to the younger, but the movement was too quick and Mark ended up biting his hand.

"Ow, fuck, you have sharp teeth!" Jackson cursed, bringing his hand into himself.

Bambam let out a [warning growl](https://youtu.be/UrINmiG8WPs?t=10s) before letting out a very angry, territorial, protective fox-like scream, and Mark returned it with his own cat-like [growl](https://youtu.be/LYQMIKfaH_k?t=8s). Jackson, having taken a good amount of time to research foxes and fox hybrids, knew enough to know that the noise Bambam made was typically the noise they made before they lunged at the fox they were fighting with. Bambam now had a different look in his eyes, going from scared to territorial in less than a second. He matched Mark's intensity and hopped off of Jackson's back in one swift movement, landing very gracefully on the floor. Bambam wasn't normally a frightening person, he was too much of a softie to be intimidating all the time; however, it's a completely different story when he's this mad. Bambam crouched a bit, his hands out and ready to attack Mark as soon as he even looked like he was going to make the first move. Mark was standing very gracefully, his arms close to his chest but his claws were out and ready to attack. Bambam let out a [gekkering](https://youtu.be/XiqcfBH8GiM?t=1m46s) noise, and that's when Youngjae entered the room. He looked at the scene in front of him, currently having a lot to process.

Mark hissed at Bambam, and Youngjae noticed Mark was getting ready to lunge. Luckily, Jackson had gotten behind Bambam and held him back, and Youngjae did the same with Mark in the knick of time. Mark let out a very feral and territorial [scream](https://youtu.be/fc-0F71EIpw?t=3s), the kind you'd hear during cat fights. Mark's tail whipped back and forth quickly, hitting Youngjae in the face a few times. Both Bambam and Mark struggled to get to one another, desperate to fight but for completely different reasons. Bambam was ready to brawl because of Jackson's now bleeding hand, and Mark was ready to fight over the scent-marking of Youngjae. Youngjae would've thought this was all incredibly strange, given that he was under the impression that Mark hated him, but he was too focused on trying not to let the two hybrids hurt themselves. Mark scratched at Youngjae and kicked at him, while Bambam just struggled to get free without hurting Jackson. Jackson carefully took Bambam out of the room, and Youngjae didn't let him go until he heard the front door close. He released Mark slowly, and when he was finally free he grabbed Youngjae by the collar and forced him up against the nearest surface, which happened to be the kitchen island.

Mark began to scent mark Youngjae, quickly opening Youngjae's button-up so that he could rub his cheeks on Youngjae's chest. Youngjae was startled at first, naturally, but quickly recovered and rested his hands on Mark's hips. Youngjae leaned back a bit, eyebrows furrowed as Mark's nails dug into his sides and preventing him from moving too much. Youngjae closed his eyes, honestly losing himself in the feeling, and little did he know that Mark was just as lost as he was. Bambam's scent was quickly fading away and being replaced by Mark's jasmine tea and honey scent. Mar forgot that this was Youngjae he was marking, meaning that he forgot Youngjae wasn't used to this kind of thing. However, Mark was in a whole different world right now, and that's why he ended up biting Youngjae. It wasn't as hard as he bit Jackson's hand, not by a long shot, it was gentle and just hard enough to break a little skin. Mark came into his own when he heard Youngjae curse and he felt Youngjae's body stiffen. Bites were really powerful scent-markers too, but it's not like Mark planned it, but now that it happened he was glad he did it.

"Ow, Mark that kind of hurt." Youngjae said as Mark moved back a bit, rubbing the bite mark on his collarbone.

"Mine." Mark said with narrowed eyes, clearly still pissed.

"Here, we can talk once I make sure Jackson is okay." Youngjae said, buttoning his shirt up half way.

"Jackson?" Mark questioned.

"Yeah, you kind of bit him, and he was bleeding really bad," Youngjae pointed out and Mark chose not to speak, "Be right back."

"Tell him I'm sorry." Mark said just as he was about to walk out of earshot.

"Will do." Youngjae said before hurrying off.

Youngjae quickly slipped on his sandals and opened the door, walking out to see a very sleepy Bambam eyeing Jackson protectively as Jackson walked to meet Youngjae where he was. After seeing that it was just Youngjae, Bambam visibly calmed down a bit, and rested his head against the window of the car he was in. Youngjae could see that Jackson managed to patch himself up, and Jackson was thankful he always kept a small first-aid kit in the car in case of situations like these. Of course, he expected it to need it when working at the shelter, but hey he's not going to get bitter. Youngjae still couldn't figure out why Mark had gotten so territorial so quickly, especially considering he could go two words without pissing Mark off somehow. Jackson noticed the scratches along Youngjae's arm, the soft bite mark on his collarbone, along with the half-buttoned up shirt, and he could guess what had just taken place. Youngjae and Jackson did their small handshake with the opposite hands, so that Jackson wouldn't end up making the injury on his hand worse.

"You okay?" Youngjae questioned.

"Me? I'm fine, there's been worse at the shelter." Jackson reassured with a smile.

"How about Bambam?" Youngjae asked.

"Still on high alert, but he's sleepy. He gets like that after stressful situations." Jackson said and Youngjae nodded.

"I'm sorry-" Youngjae began.

"Don't be, it was out of your control. I told Bambam not to do that, stop apologizing for things you didn't do." Jackson reassured.

"I just feel bad. I don't get it, out of nowhere he jus-" Youngjae began to rant.

"Well, I can tell you that he doesn't hate you, not in the least," Jackson informed and Youngjae looked at him confused, "If he hated you he would've attacked you when you held him back, and he wouldn't have fought over you like that."

"So then why does he-" Youngjae began again, only to be interrupted.

"A lot of hybrids push themselves away from their owners because it's easier to be cold than to have your heart crushed again, there's hybrids that come into the shelter like that all the time. You have to remember that it's a completely different world for hybrids; not in a mental capacity sense, but in a societal sense. On average, 85% of all hybrids have been abused by someone and 78% of hybrids that come into shelters have been abused by a previous owner. 93% of hybrids that get returned to shops have had an abusive owner, and the number just goes up each time they get returned. Not to mention the threat of the underground, or getting thrown onto the street. After a while, wouldn't you build up a wall too?" Jackson questioned, "Wouldn't you be skeptical too? Wouldn't you hate not being able to predict what was going to happen because someone finally decided to be nice to you after all that time of enduring abuse?"

"Of course I would, I'm not saying that it's his fault, I'm just lost-" Youngjae began to ramble.

"I never said you were, I'm just telling you his perspective." Jackson informed.

"So what should I do?" Youngjae asked with a sigh, arms crossed over his chest.

"Just push him a little bit, but not too much, you don't want to throw him into an anxiety attack. Also, don't take everything he says at face value, okay? He might say he's fine, but he's probably not. Just like he says he hates you, but he honestly doesn't." Jackson said, putting a hand on Youngjae's shoulder.

"Thanks, Jackson." Youngjae managed to smile.

"Anytime." Jackson smiled back.

"Take care, oh! And Mark says he's sorry." Youngjae began to back up.

"You too, and tell him not to worry, he probably doesn't even remember doing it." Jackson waved off, walking to his car.

"Tell Bambam to get some rest!" Youngjae said.

He faintly heard a confirmation from Jackson, followed by the slam of a car door. He sighed as he watched them back out of the driveway and down the street before retreating into his own house. He sighed as he closed the door and took his sandals off, his headache a million times worse than before. He rubbed his temples as he rested on the door and head turned toward the floor, not noticing Mark standing there with his arms crossed and burning holes into his head. Youngjae looked down, not feeling his headache die down in the least. Even if he couldn't sleep at the moment, he was going to try and take a nap. After he had talked to Mark, of course, and tried to work everything out. Youngjae would be lying if he said it didn't feel nice to be rubbed on like that by Mark, but the circumstances weren't nice. He hoped Mark was okay, and that Bambam was as well. He'd have to call them later, after he hopefully took a nap, and make sure the both of them are alright. He finally looked back up, meeting Mark's cold and angry eyes. Youngjae was about to say something but Mark just strode right over to him, taking off his button-up shirt and put one of Mark's oversized sweaters on him instead.

Mark took one look over before putting his nose near Youngjae's neck and sniffing him, then nodding in approval. Now he smelled nothing like Bambam, and everything like Mark. Good, next time a hybrid comes around they'll know that Youngjae is Mark's and nobody else's. Youngjae was Mark's human, and he wasn't going to be sharing, not like that. Mark took another look at him before walking off to go to the living room, with Youngjae following him after a quiet moment. Youngjae looked down at the sweater that was put on him, noticing it was beige. Youngjae scratched the back of his head as he took the fabric between his other two fingers. It looked nice with his black jeans, though he felt bad for wearing Mark's sweater. Youngjae wasn't going to protest against wearing it though, he didn't have a death wish. He knew now why Mark put it on him, and he couldn't help but feel a bit flattered. Mark had sat himself on the couch, focusing on the T.V. and trying to act like nothing just happened. Youngjae sat down next to him with a huff, and looked over at Mark, who waited a minute before looking over at Youngjae.

"Staring at me like that is creepy." Mark commented, knees near his chest.

"What was that about, Mark?" Youngjae questioned, one arm over the back of the couch and the other on the arm rest.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Mark shrugged, crossing his arms.

"Yes you do, don't play stupid." Youngjae said, nodding at him.

"Do you just enjoy walking around, smelling like hybrids that don't even belong to you?" Mark questioned with an accusatory tone, narrowing his eyes.

"Okay, well firstly, I don't 'own' anyone, and secondly, Bambam has been coming around here since Jackson first got him." Youngjae explained as if it was that simple.

"That's not a reason to go around reeking of him," Mark jabbed again, "Bambam doesn't even _live_ here."

"Bambam's just really clingy-" Youngjae began.

"Do you not realize how important scent-marking is to us? How big of a thing it is? Scent marking is officially making something yours, and marking it so that the other hybrids know not to try anything. To let other hybrids know that this particular thing, or person, is _just_ yours and nobody else's. That you're theirs and they're yours, why is that so hard to understand? Hybrids don't go around scent-mark just anything, it's something special, especially if it's done on a person," Mark explained with exasperation and his feelings clearly hurt, "God, is this why your fiancee broke up with you?"

"...She died in a car crash a few years ago," Youngjae said after a long moment of silence and with averted eyes, "And I'm sorry I didn't realize how important it was."

"She-She died?" Mark asked, now feeling like the biggest asshole in the world.

"Yeah, I had fought with her that morning, and she left to calm down. Next thing I know I'm burying her, it was almost three years ago," Youngjae trailed off, "But don't worry about that, it's fine."

"I'm sorry, I didn't-" Mark began.

"It's okay, you didn't know, just like I didn't know about marking," Youngjae reassured, "Like I said, it was almost three years ago, and I've had my time to grieve, so I'm okay now."

"Look, just because-" Mark began.

"I need you to tell me what's going on; first I think you hate me, next thing I know you're fighting over me," Youngjae began, "Why don't you trust me?"

"It's nothing." Mark tried to dismiss with his slender hand.

"Just tell me." Youngjae pressed, now sitting up and leaning towards him.

"Stop, just le-" Mark began.

"Please, tell me." Youngjae pleaded softly, and Mark was silent for a long moment.

"I don't..." Mark paused, looking away, "I don't want to get hurt again." Mark now had his back turned to Youngjae.

"Mark, hey Mark, look at me," Youngjae put a hand on Mark's shoulder, "I'm not going anywhere, you're stuck with me."

"Yeah, it's nice to say that, but you can't promise that. One day you'll get tired of me too and you'll want to get rid of me." Mark confessed, looking down with tears pooling in his eyes, "Everyone does."

"Mark, I'll never get tired of you," Youngjae's hand moved to cup Mark's cheek, "I promise that. I could never hate you, and I'm willing to do anything to prove that."

"You-You can't just ask me that, I don't have a clue what to even ask you to do," Mark rambled, "I just-" Mark sighed in exasperation, "I can't trust people, okay? It's not that easy, Youngjae. I can't just ask you to do something to prove your love like some Shakespearean story."

"Give me a chance then, Mark, just give me a chance." Youngjae pleaded, moving closer to Mark.

"I-I can't, Youngjae, I'm not getting hurt again." Mark shook his head as a couple tears rolled down his cheeks.

"So then just stop trying to make me hate you," Youngjae wiped away Mark's tears gently, "Because that's never going to happen."

Mark was silent, currently lost in his own inner turmoil. Mark wanted to trust Youngjae so bad, he hated how he couldn't just trust like other people normally could. He hated how he was trapped in his own mind and his own fears, even though his mind was just doing what it thought was best. He wanted nothing more than to just trust Youngjae with his whole heart and mind, and just laugh the days away like he didn't have a care or fear in the world. Unfortunately, he couldn't just do that. Years and years of being neglected and abused had done their toll, and now he was still suffering. He hated it, it was almost like he was still a victim, even though he knew that Youngjae wouldn't do anything violent to him. He took in a shaky breath, feeling more tears fall down his cheeks, and before he knew it he was sobbing. Youngjae gently took Mark into his arms, rubbing the hybrid's back gently and quietly trying to soothe him. Mark thought of all the times his previous owners had abused him, all the times he was denied food and water in that shop, all the times that uncle eyed him like he was candy.

All those times his owners only used him for what his breed specialized in, all those times that he disobeyed his 'master' and ended up limping for weeks. He remembered that one time that his last owner got really mad at him and ended up almost breaking Mark's leg. He remembered how he couldn't even stand up for months after that incident, how he was chained to a wooden pillar in the basement like some animal. How his last owner refused to take him to a doctor and left Mark to suffer in the dark and cold basement alone. How Mark wasn't allowed to cry too loud because it would 'inconvenience his master'. Sometimes Mark still limps because of that incident, not often, but every once in a while. He was fully aware of the fact that he could be manipulated by affection by people if he let them get too close. Mark felt Youngjae gently smooth his hair, and his sobbing slowly died down to a small cry.

"You know, when I first got you from that awful shop, I was worried about you. A lot, actually." Youngjae broke the silence with a confession.

"Y-You what?" Mark questioned with a sniffle.

"I was worried about you, it was hard falling asleep." Youngjae said quietly.

"Why?" Mark asked with furrowed brows, the concept of someone worrying about him was completely foreign.

"You were so underweight, and it scared me so much. I was so worried that I'd wake up one morning and you'd be..." Youngjae couldn't finish his sentence.

"I'd be what?" Mark questioned quietly, genuinely curious.

"That you'd have withered away from malnutrition," Youngjae said, almost a whisper, "That I'd wake up and wouldn't be able to do anything to help you."

"...Really?" Mark questioned after a moment, his heart a bit warmed by the fact that Youngjae was genuinely worried for him.

"Yeah, you were so small, you were nearly skin and bones, Mark." Youngjae said, unknowingly holding Mark tighter.

"...Did you really mean what you said back there?" Mark questioned, "About never leaving me?" Mark continued, allowing himself to be vulnerable.

"Of course, with my whole heart. I've told you from the beginning that I'll always be here for you, and this is a no-strings attached thing. I just want to be there for you." Youngjae smiled.

"Cross your heart?" Mark said, still hesitant.

"And hope to die." Youngjae finished and Mark smiled.

Mark instantly hugged Youngjae back tightly and crawled into his lap more, making Youngjae fall back a bit, and Youngjae just chuckled lightly. Youngjae's back hit somewhere between the arm of the couch and the corner of it, and he smiled a bit wider; Mark's tail whipping about happily. Mark buried his face in Youngjae's neck, a smile still on his lips. Youngjae's words had truly touched Mark, and he made the sudden decision to trust him. Youngjae's done a lot for Mark, and Mark was fully aware of that, and the things Youngjae told him only made his heart melt more. While he wouldn't fully open up to him tonight, and he wasn't quite sure when he'd even fully open up to him, but for right now the both of them were okay with just this. They were okay with Mark trusting Youngjae enough to show affection and do simple things without having a looming fear of things going south. Mark, admittedly, was  was probably diving in head-first, and he just hoped that this wouldn't come back to bite him in the ass like it always does. Youngjae maneuvered himself from the odd angle to a more typical position, with his legs resting on the footrest in front of him.

 

Mark moved to straddle Youngjae better, providing a more comfortable position for the both of them. Youngjae sat back on the couch, arms not leaving Mark's frame, and he sighed happily. Youngjae's relieved that Mark had told him all of those things, that he released some of his pent-up emotions and trusted Youngjae enough to cry in front of him. Youngjae was happy that he managed to put Mark a bit at ease, and made him feel a bit better about everything. He wanted to be there for Mark, and he was happy that Mark was letting that happen. Currently,  Mark was making up for all the time he lost being so cold towards Youngjae, and he had decided that he wasn't going to move from this spot unless the world was ending. Or if Youngjae needed to get up to get something. Youngjae softly rubbed up and down Mark's back, unknowingly lulling Mark into a soft sleep. Youngjae and Mark both felt a large weight lift off of their shoulders, and the lack of sleep Youngjae had gotten this week caught up with him all at once. He softly rested his cheek on top of Mark's head, slowly falling asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my throat hurts and i think the note from chapter 1 is gonna keep showing up under this note but i have no idea how to stop that from happening h e l p
> 
> edit: hellooo~ it's just me editing again, like i've be doing with the other chapters, so don't mind me! also, if you ever see something that u think is like inconsistent or something, don't be afraid to comment what it was!! half the time i don't realize i've made a mistake until like days later, after i've already published the chapter. -5/31/18


	4. The Talk

Youngjae awoke in a very different position, and it almost startled him. Almost. He was too groggy to be startled, so he ended up just being really confused. He remembered sitting down on the couch, the conversation he had with Mark, he remembered Mark crying, the very big hug he got, and then he fell asleep? But he fell asleep upright, so why was he laying down with Mark still on his chest? Had he really moved around that much? He blinked, trying to shake off the slowness that came with just waking up. What time was it, anyway? Fuck, his phone hadn't been on the charger this whole time. Great. He groggily looked around, lifting his head off of the pillow a little. Wait, pillow? Oh hey, there's a blanket too. It wasn't his blanket, and he knew that for a fact because his blanket wasn't a color combination of red, white, and beige. This was one of Mark's blankets. He rubbed his eyes with one of his hands, still confused since he has absolutely no concept of time at the moment. His phone was probably dead by now, maybe not, he didn't know. Anything could happen and he probably wouldn't be fazed.

Either way, regardless of what time or day it was, Mark was still sleeping soundly on Youngjae's chest, gently rising and falling as Youngjae breathed. Mark's hands gently had Youngjae's sweater in small fists, legs on either side of him. Youngjae smiled softly, gently rubbing Mark's back, and Mark gently snuggled into Youngjae. He smoothly got his phone out from his pocket (with great effort, by the way) to look at the time. Oh, well, would ya look at that, he's been asleep for a day and a half. His phone was also at a wonderful charge of 3%, so he'll need to plug it in soon if he doesn't want it shutting off. Youngjae wondered if Mark had been sleeping the whole time too-well, obviously not, hence the blanket and pillow. Had he just been sleeping here though most of the time? Had he eaten? He better have eaten something or else Youngjae was getting up right this instant and making dinner. Dinner? Breakfast? Brinner (breakfast+dinner=brinner)? Youngjae's hand traveled up from Mark's back to his hair, running his hands through the bright red locks gently before moving to gently scratch Mark's ear. Mark purred softly and a small smile drew itself onto Youngjae's face as he observed Mark, who took in a breath before he spoke.

"You're awake." Mark said sleepily.

"Yeah, after almost two days." Youngjae softly joked.

"I woke up early this morning," Mark sighed in content, silent for a moment before continuing, "You didn't wanna wake up, so I brought my pillow and blanket down."

"I hope you weren't uncomfortable." Youngjae smiled lightly, knowing Mark wasn't.

"Hm? No, you're very nice to lay on." Mark proved his point by snuggling into him more.

"Thank you, I trained for years with the best." Youngjae joked and Mark softly laughed.

"I knew you had a mysterious past." Mark joked back.

"Yes, shrouded in secrets," Youngjae's smile grew, "Oh, hey, have you eaten?"

"I got some yogurt when I woke up this morning." Mark mumbled, eyes still closed.

"That's not food, Mark." Youngjae said softly, yet sternly.

"Eh, I'm fine, just wanted to lay with you." Mark said softly, and Youngjae felt his heart turn to mush.

"You still need to eat, I'm a little surprised you could sleep that long." Youngjae commented.

"Cat, remember? I could sleep for a whole week and be fine." Mark said, moving so his chin rested on Youngjae's chest and he opened his [electric-blue eyes](http://www.lifewithcats.tv/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/whitecats1.jpg).

"What happened to your stereotype-hating attitude?" Youngjae teased.

"I'm too sleepy and happy to care." Mark commented, starting to go back out of it due to Youngjae's gentle scratching.

Youngjae and Mark were both quiet for a long moment, with Mark too lost in Youngjae's scratching to really say anything more, and Youngjae too wrapped up in observing Mark to continue the conversation. Mark's eyes started to glaze over, gently rolling back with his lids 3/4's of the way closed with a small smile on his face. Mark leaned into Youngjae's hand more, and Youngjae got a feeling of Deja Vu. Bambam, that's what this reminded him of. He wasn't going to say it, he didn't have a death wish, but it did. When Jackson kept scratching that spot behind Bambam's ear, something he did when he either wanted Bambam to calm down or stop doing something (and it worked every time). Was it kind of like a hybrid thing, maybe with only certain types? Youngjae didn't want to seem like an asshole by wording it like that, but his curiosity couldn't help but grow when he felt Mark's grip tighten on the sweater that Youngjae was wearing. He made a mental note to find out more information about hybrids, it was wrong of him to keep going around not knowing anything.

What if he gave Mark something cat hybrids aren't supposed to eat? Youngjae wouldn't forgive himself if Mark ended up in the hospital because of his ignorance. Mark's eyes slowly closed the rest of the way, a small smile on his face. Another small smile etched itself onto Youngjae's lips as well, not being able to help what he was doing at this point. He wasn't cruel for doing this, was he? Especially since the effect it had on Mark was obvious. He was sure if Mark wanted him to stop, he would've told him by now. Youngjae's other hand trailed up and down Mark's spine softly, and he felt Mark's tail twitch back and forth a little faster. Cats did that when they were happy, right? He didn't know a lot about cats, something he was going to change, but his grandmother used to have one. It was a fluffy white cat, with a small patch of greyish-brown over one of it's eyes, and so because of his grandmother he had a little bit of knowledge on cats. Not anything extensive though, really just basic stuff that might not even apply to Mark in the first place. He only just noticed how loud Mark was purring, and he figured he should probably stop before he finds out what happens if he does it too much. He instead took to running his other hand, the one formerly scratching behind Mark's ear, through Mark's hair.

Mark whined at the loss of contact, letting out a shaky breath before opening his eyes. Mark's eyes were a bit more dilated than before, something that's only really noticeable since Youngjae was so close to him. Youngjae smiled softly, and the hybrid scooted up closer so he could bury his face in Youngjae's neck. Mark softly traced patterns on Youngjae's clothed chest with his nails. Youngjae chuckled softly, finding Mark's actions rather cute. In a totally platonic way, _totally_.

"Sorry, I got a bit carried away." Youngjae admitted with a small blush.

"Mm, 's fine, just felt good." Mark explained vaguely, and Youngjae decided to leave it at that.

"Well," Youngjae softly patted Mark's back, "I need to go make you some food."

Mark whined, "Can't we just lay here?"

"Considering we both need to eat to live, I'm afraid not." Youngjae said with a smile, and he felt Mark make a face.

"But I don't wanna move." Mark said, and Youngjae smirked.

"Lucky for you, I have the perfect idea." Youngjae said, and at this Mark's eyes opened suspiciously.

Youngjae, without saying another word, simply sat up. He held Mark by his bottom and stood up, walking into the kitchen as if Mark weighed nothing. To which, in Youngjae's eyes, Mark practically weighed nothing. Mark was about as light as a feather, and it had Youngjae partially worried. Mark's ear twitched as Youngjae walked, putting his arms around Youngjae's neck and poking his head out from his neck enough to see. Mark was surprised, for more reason than one. Firstly, how was Youngjae able to carry him? Mark had always been told he was on the heavier side (despite it being far from the truth) and Mark concluded that either Youngjae was really strong, those people lied, or both. Mark wrapped his legs around Youngjae's back, so that he could have an easier time carrying Mark. He started to rub his cheek gently against Youngjae's collarbone and neck, mixing Youngjae's scent with his own. Mark, when he woke up this morning, had been nervous. He was nervous that when Youngjae woke up, he'd come to his 'senses' and become exactly what Mark feared.

Mark's nervousness and fear had quickly subsided though when he noticed how protectively Youngjae had been cuddling him. Mark, truthfully, had never really been cuddled before due to how badly he was treated by his past owners. Mark felt bad that Youngjae had been asleep in that upright position for so long, and that's when he got the pillow and blanket. He had carefully placed it on the arm of the fairly large couch, and gently laid Youngjae on it. Youngjae was dead weight, so it was a bit difficult for Mark's small self to situate Youngjae correctly on the pillow, but luckily Youngjae had moved in his sleep, and the place he happened to move was right where Mark wanted him. Youngjae had moved to his side, back faced toward Mark, and Mark gently placed the blanket over the sleeping figure. Mark rubbed his eyes as he stood upright, staring at the wall for a moment before deciding that he wanted yogurt. Mark had gotten a lot better with eating since he left the shelter, and was growing used to being able to get whatever he wanted whenever he wanted.

Mark had quickly finished his yogurt, realizing that he'd much rather be sleeping with Youngjae than eating. So he threw away the empty container away and quickly washed his spoon, the anticipation of going back to sleep with Youngjae clouding his mind. He quickly and quietly made his way back over to Youngjae, one of the perks of being a cat hybrid. He carefully pulled the covers back, seeing that Youngjae was now laying on his back, arms under the pillow as he slept soundly. Mark, having natural cat-like grace and balance, carefully moved to straddle Youngjae without waking him. As expected, it worked, and Mark moved to grip either side of the blanket before softly laying down on Youngjae's chest. Youngjae took a deep breath, wrapping his arms protectively around Mark, and exhaled when he felt Mark cuddling into him. Mark had fallen back asleep to the sound on Youngjae's heartbeat.

Flashing back to present time, Mark was carefully set on the kitchen island, and he reluctantly let go of Youngjae. Mark rubbed the sleep out of his eyes with the backs of his fingers, another action Youngjae found cute as hell. In a _totally_ platonic way. Mark rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, feeling a little bit more awake and alert than he was a few minutes ago. He put his hands on the edge of the island, putting his weight on them as he leaned forward a little. He kicked his legs back and forth, still trying to fully shake off sleep.

"What do you wanna have?" Youngjae questioned with a quirked brow.

"Mmm-mm," Mark shrugged, "Something edible."

"Ah, yes, my favourite dish," Youngjae laughed a little, "Something Edible, trademark pending."

"Shut up," Mark laughed lightly, "You know what I mean."

"Do I?" Youngjae playfully questioned.

"I could just eat you instead." Mark retorted, jokingly biting the air and making a noise.

"I don't think I'd taste very good." Youngjae laughed a bit, getting some things out of the fridge.

"I think I'll be able to stomach you just fine." Mark smiled, tilting his head as Youngjae closed the fridge.

"Ah, well make sure to put a little seasoning on me first." Youngjae smiled, buttering the pan now on the stove.

"Nah, I think I'll just eat you raw." Mark said and Youngjae laughed again.

"How did we start talking about this?" Youngjae questioned, cracking a few eggs into the pan.

"I dunno," Mark shrugged, hopping off the counter, "Cause you're weird."

"Oh, I'm the weird one?" Youngjae questioned, eyebrow raised as he looked back at Mark over his shoulder.

"Yes, I'm glad you're finally realizing it." Mark confirmed with a short nod, arms crossed and tail flicking back and forth.

"Weren't you the one that put goldfish in your yogurt a few days ago?" Youngjae questioned, pressing down on the egg with a spatula.

"That's completely irrelevant." Mark dismissed as Youngjae threw some bread in the toaster.

"Oh, really? How convenient." Youngjae said, smiling at him through the hair falling in his eyes.

"Shut up and make my breakfast." Mark said, putting his arms around Youngjae's waist and resting his cheek on his back, near his shoulder.

Youngjae let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head as he continued making food for the both of them. He wasn't making anything fancy, just an egg sandwich. Youngjae liked the affection that Mark was giving him at the moment, and couldn't help the soft shade of pink that colored his cheeks. Youngjae moved a little to take the four slices of toast out of the toaster, dividing the toast quantity evenly between the two plates on the counter. Youngjae lifted the egg off of the pan with the spatula and placed it on one of the slices of bread, using the twin slice to finish off the sandwich. He then cracked a few more eggs into the pan, now making himself the same thing. It was quiet between the two, but it wasn't an uncomfortable silence. It was a very peaceful silence, the kind that said 'hey, i care about you' without actually voicing it. He put the same ingredients in this one as he did the last one, which would make the two sandwiches identical once they were cooked. Mark would be lying if he said he thought it didn't smell good, and he'd also be lying if he said he didn't like being so close to Youngjae.

Youngjae leaned his head back onto Mark's shoulder, which would've been an awkward angle if Mark were any shorter, and he let the egg cook. He let out a content breath, putting his slightly larger hands over Mark's slender ones, and closed his eyes, almost savouring the moment between the two of them. It was nice, _this_ was nice. Just the two of them enjoying one another's company so early in the morning. It almost felt domestic, especially when Youngjae factored in what kind of job he had. It was almost funny, but Youngjae decided to keep that to himself in fear of ruining the little moment they were having. Mark rubbed his cheek softly on Youngjae before standing on his tip-topes and Youngjae hummed out when he felt Mark's nose brush against his neck, then hissed when Mark actually bit him. His body scrunched up, and he stood up a bit, and he squinted his eyes at Mark, who was currently wide-eyed, blushing, and looking at the other in embarrassment.

"Ahh, your teeth are so sharp." Youngjae commented, hand moving to rub the recently bitten spot, and Mark's blush darkened.

"Sorry, I-I just-" Mark started fumbling for words.

"No, no it's fine, I just wasn't expecting it." Youngjae said, moving his hand to see if Mark had drew blood (and he didn't).

"Are you sure?" Mark questioned and Youngjae nodded, now fully standing upright to tend to the egg that was in the pan.

"Yeah, yeah, just-why did you bite me?" Youngjae questioned, laughing a bit at the end, "I mean, I think I still have the one from the other day." Youngjae brought down his sweater a bit to show Mark the still-healing tiny bite.

"I-I was feeling happy and then-then I kept uh, kept thinking about uh, Bambam and uh," Mark was clearly drowning here, "I-I just had this instinct um-"

"If you're uncomfortable talking about it, we don't have to stay on the subject, we can just talk about something else." Youngjae smiled at Mark before picking the egg up and setting it on the toast on his plate.

"No, it's not that, I mean it's kind of that, but I just-like I don't know how to word it." Mark said, moving away to give Youngjae room to walk.

"Well, here, let's go sit down and start eating, and meanwhile you can take some time to think." Youngjae flashed another smile, and Mark breathed out a sigh of relief.

Youngjae picked up the two plates, setting them on the nearby dining table on opposite sides. After asking Mark what he'd like to drink, he moved back into the kitchen to get a glass of milk, and a glass of water for himself, along with some yogurt for Mark (even though Mark didn't ask for it). Youngjae's mind was still on Mark, wondering why he had bit him like that. He understood the other day, with what happened between Mark and Bambam and all, but today was different. There was nobody there to provoke Mark, and Youngjae remembered Mark saying he kept thinking about Bambam. So he kept thinking of the incident, which led him to bite Youngjae? He came back to the dining table to see Mark fiddling with his hands nervously, and Youngjae's eyes furrowed together, why was he so nervous? Youngjae had already expressed that Mark didn't have to continue, so he didn't want to say it again and make it seem like Youngjae didn't want to talk about it, when, frankly, it was all Youngjae wanted to talk about. He set Mark's milk and yogurt by his plate, and his own water by his plate, and sat down. Mark, honestly, didn't know what got into him just now that caused him to bite the other like he did.

Now he had to explain biting to Youngjae, because 1) Youngjae has admitted many times he knows as much about hybrids as he knows about doing heart surgery, and 2) if he didn't then Youngjae would walk around either thinking the wrong thing, saying the wrong thing, or both. Biting was a personal thing for Hybrids, especially for Mark given his past. Mark didn't bite anyone, not on an affectionate level, and Youngjae was actually the first person that Mark had ever bit like that, and Mark still wasn't sure what that was entirely supposed to mean. Biting, when not being used for self-defense obviously was like a territorial claim on someone, and it sent marked the person like a mother fucker, which is why biting is so personal for hybrids. Thing was, Youngjae (even a day and a half later) still smelled mostly of Mark, so scent marking definitely wasn't his motive, so what was it? How was he even supposed to explain something he did when he's not even sure why he did it in the first place? Was it a territorial thing? Did thinking about the incident with Bambam just trigger something in him? What was it? Mark looked up to meet Youngjae's worried eyes, and before Youngjae could change the subject, Mark started to try to explain himself properly.

“Biting is like a thing hybrids do when they want to claim something, when it's not being used to defend ourselves obviously,” Mark looked away as his blush darkened, “it’s like a territorial thing, and it scent marks better than our normal rubbing with our scent glands would.”

“Oh, so that’s why you did it, then.” Youngjae said, definitely intrigued.

“Yes-no-kinda?” Mark stuttered, “I mean, I started to think about Bambam scent marking you the other day, and thinking about that lead to other thoughts, and I like bit you without realizing until after I did it?”

He couldn’t tell Youngjae that when he thought of Bambam scent marking him the other day, he thought of his episode where he bit his collarbone. He couldn’t tell Youngjae that he thought about when he rubbed his fact on Youngjae’s bare chest, and started thinking about what it’d be like to cuddle when the other had his shirt off. He couldn’t tell Youngjae that he thought about the face Youngjae made and the noises that left Youngjae's mouth when he had grinded onto him that first day, how pleasured and conflicted he looked. He certainly couldn't tell Youngjae that he couldn't stop thinking about how attractive Youngjae was and how Bambam was so eager and willing to mark HIS Youngjae, and he definitely didn't want to tell Youngjae that it sparked unfamiliar feelings inside of him. That ever since then, and ever since that conversation, all Mark could think about was how protected he felt when Youngjae cuddled him. That now he couldn't look Youngjae in the eyes or more than ten seconds without having to look away because he was blushing.

“Oh, so you were marking me as yours?” Youngjae questioned, feeling a small blush creep on his own cheeks.

“U-Uhm, y-yeah, ma-maybe.” Mark stuttered.

“Well, I’d bite you, but I don’t think it’d have the same effect.” Youngjae said playfully, trying to lighten the mood and not realizing the impact of his words.

“Yeah,” Mark nervously laughed, blushing furiously, “Sometimes owners do it to hybrids and vice versa.”

 _’What am I saying?!’_ , Mark thought.

“Oh, doesn’t it hurt though?”Youngjae questioned curiously.

“Not when it’s during the heats that most hybrids have.” Mark informed, refusing to look Youngjae in the eyes at this point.

“Heats?” Youngjae questioned, completely thrown off.

 

 _'oh god, oh god, oh god, WHY did I say that? A chasm needs to open up right now and swallow me whole before I end up digging my own grave.'_ Mark thought.

 

“Y-Yeah, heats, you don’t-don’t know what heats are?” Mark shyly questioned, only now looking at Youngjae with his hair in his face.

“No,” Youngjae shook his head, “Uh, my grandmother used to have a cat, but I didn’t care for it except refilling the water and food bowl for her sometimes. I’ve never really had like, pets either in case you were going to ask.”

 _’Jesus Christ, I’m digging myself a bigger hole’_ , Mark thought.

“Oh, uh, well how do I explain this without being weird, uhm…” Mark trailed off.

“Just tell me, I promise I won’t be weird about it or anything.” Youngjae swore.

“Okay, well, heats are something a lot of hybrids get usually every month if they don't take suppressants or something. It’s painful if there’s nothing or no one to help us through it, and we get really needy and our bodies are basically trying to prepare us to like,” Mark hid his face, his voice now muffled “Breed, and so we’re filled with hormones and stuff, and most of the time owners take advantage of hybrids who are in heat because we’re weaker in that state, and we can’t fight anyone off, and our bodies end up submitting even if we don’t want it.” Mark said, having small flashbacks of his past.

“Mark,” Youngjae started after a long moment of silence, “Mark, forgive me if this is a bit like, like I’m asking too much, but did that ever happen to you?”

“Wh-What would give-give you that i-idea?” Mark stumbled, avoiding the question and face still covered.

“Mark,” Youngjae moved to kneel next to Mark, gently taking his wrists and moving them from his face, “Did that ever happen to you?” Youngjae gently held Mark’s hands.

“Y-Yes.” Mark nodded with a small cry after a long moment, quickly going to hug Youngjae.

Youngjae hugged back quietly, gently rubbing Mark’s back and letting him cry. Youngjae would offer words of comfort in a moment, but what Mark needed right now what just someone to cry on. Mark held Youngjae tightly, his small and slender hands gently balling Youngjae’s sweater into fists. Youngjae stood up a bit, enough so that he could sit down in Mark’s chair and keep the hybrid in his lap. Mark’s tears wet the sweater Youngjae was still wearing, which was Mark's, but Youngjae didn’t mind. That's what washing machines are for, and it's not like they both don't have more sweaters and shirts. Mark took in a shaky breath, and moved his arms to go around Youngjae's waist. Youngjae couldn't help but let his mind wander and wonder, was this one of the reasons why Mark was so cold to him? Was he afraid of Youngjae turning out the same way? Was Mark scared that Youngjae would do something that horrible to him? Is that why Mark did what he did when Youngjae first took him home, was it because that's just was Mark was used to? It made him sick to think that Mark was forced to do those things against his will, and his previous owners didn't even care.

It made him feel sick to think that this is the normal for a lot of hybrids, to think that Mark was just so used to being used like that, that he ended up thinking Youngjae had been being so nice just because Youngjae had wanted sex. He wondered what he could do to finally make Mark feel safe again, and feel like someone loved him, to assure Mark that he'd never ever do anything like that. He's always made it clear to Mark that he doesn't see hybrids any less than humans, and whoever does is an asshole. Youngjae never understood why people thought so lowly of hybrids, and treated them so horribly. They have feelings and minds of their own, just like any other living thing out there. It's not like they're incapable of taking care of themselves, or holding positions that any human could. Youngjae held Mark a bit closer, feeling too protective of the hybrid to not do so. He took a deep breath, still rubbing Marks back even though Mark's crying has died down by now. How long had the two of them just stayed like that, with Mark crying and Youngjae losing himself in his own thoughts? He brought both of his hands to Mark's shoulders, gently lifting the hybrid away from him so he could look him in the eyes as he spoke.

"Mark," Youngjae's hands moved to cup the other's cheeks, "I will _never, ever, **ever**_ do that to you, okay?" Mark only nodded, "No, Mark, look me in the eyes," Mark listened, "I swear to every deity known and written down that I will never do that to you. Those men who did that are the scum of the fucking Earth, and deserve to be castrated."

Mark was silent for a moment, noting how Youngjae cursed and how he'd never used that language unless he was dead serious about something (or, in the case of when Mark pulled that stunt when they first got to Youngjae's house, flustered). Youngjae had always worded himself carefully when he was upset, especially when he was mad, and he always managed to keep a calm demeanor no matter what. Now, though, Mark could visibly see how angry he was, and Mark knew it wasn't at him. No, Youngjae was pissed at his previous owners, and anyone else who's done that to Mark. He also noted how Youngjae's never once used a violent threat, and how he used one in what he just told Mark. Was Youngjae really that protective of him? Did Youngjae really love him that much? The word was foreign to Mark, never having experienced love himself. Was that what it was like to love someone? He's heard about it, and he's heard people that came into the shop telling their friends they loved one another, saying how they loved the eyes on a hybrid, among other things. So, without giving it a second thought, Mark believed him.

"I believe you." Mark said in a small voice, breaking the silence.

"Good, because I really do mean it. If I ever see those men, I'll put them in a coma myself, I don't care if it's in public or not. I would never do anything like that to you, know why?" Youngjae questioned, still holding eye contact.

"Why?" Mark inquired curiously.

"Because you're a person, not a toy. You are a living being with feelings, thoughts, and a mind of your own. You're not some living sex doll that lacks the capacity to do things, you're so much fucking more than that, and don't you **EVER** think of yourself that way, understand?"Youngjae questioned and Mark nodded, "No, Mark, I need to hear you say it."

"I promise I won't think of myself that way, I promise." Mark said, emotionally overwhelmed with what Youngjae was telling him.

"Good, I care about you a lot, okay? I'm always here for you, no matter what, even if you have to wake me up, I'll be here for you." Youngjae reassured in a softer tone, and Mark nodded.

"Same to you, Youngjae." Mark said, wiping away a happy tear.

"You're crying." Youngjae noted, eyebrows furrowed.

"Yeah, but it's not because I'm sad." Mark confessed, and Youngjae gave him a small smile.

"If you're happy, then I'm happy, I meant every word I said." Youngjae reassured.

"I know." Mark nodded, smiling back a little.

"Good, now you need to finish eating," He turned Mark around in his lap, and put his arms around his waist, "And then we can put on a movie or something."

"Do I get to have my fish fries if I eat it all?" Mark inquired, and Youngjae laughed a bit.

"You eat it all, and I'll give you whatever you want." Youngjae approved.

"I'm fine with the fries." Mark smiled and Youngjae laughed again.

"You know, they kind of remind me of Cheetos if, you know, Cheetos were fishy instead of cheesy." Youngjae ended up rambling a bit, and Mark laughed, something Youngjae heard rarely, but was music to his ears every time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahh, i had to rewrite the second half of this chapter bc ao3 crashed for a little bit yesterday :(( but i'm really happy with this chapter bc we learned more about Mark and took away more of his fears and insecurities, and the two of them are closer, and that makes me happy :)) i'm also going to be adding another member of got7 into the mix within the next chapter or two, who do you think it is?? :DD
> 
> edit: hello hello hello, i'm just editing this chapter so pay me no mind c:


	5. Busted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this was like a day (or day and a half depending on your time zone and stuff?) late, my mom was using the laptop 25/8 so it took longer than I expected to make and publish a chapter /.\ I hope this is okay though! I'm actually really happy with this chapter, but please let me know what you think :)

Youngjae and Mark were currently watching a movie, which they were now almost finished with. Mark wanted to watch the first movie remake of Alice In Wonderland, and Youngjae didn't mind; especially considering he quite liked the movie himself. They were [cuddled](https://d2v9y0dukr6mq2.cloudfront.net/video/thumbnail/FyKJcnp/cute-mexican-couple-cuddling-on-couch_njnmmqvgx__F0000.png) up in the [theatre room](https://st.hzcdn.com/simgs/fdc1eca005d71adf_4-8370/contemporary-home-theater.jpg) on the squared off couch, practically surrounded by pillows. Youngjae was leaned up against the corner section of the couch, with Mark laying on his side on Youngjae's chest. Their breathing matched one another, slow breaths leaving their bodies. Mark unknowingly played with Youngjae's shirt, gently bringing it into his fists before releasing it again, only to trace patterns onto Youngjae's chest with his nails. One of Youngjae's arms rested right below Mark's shoulder/back area, and his other hand gently rested on Mark's arm, gently tracing his thumb back and forth on the exposed skin. Youngjae's cheek gently rested on the top on Mark's hair with the help of the pillows that were currently propping his head up. It was quite domestic, and currently the both of them forgot about everything else except what was going on in the room.

Mark was silent, not an uncommon thing, but almost all of his attention was on the movie that was currently playing. It was on the part where the White Queen was giving Alice the blood of the Jabberwocky, which would return her back home. Mark's eyebrows furrowed as he watched the scene unfold, not understanding why Alice would want to leave such an amazing world for the boring real world. Mark tucked his lower lip between his teeth as he watched, growing a bit irritated as he waited for the outcome; he secretly hoped Alice would stay in Wonderland forever with her friends instead of going back up to the real world. What was the appeal? Everything was so boring now, especially when compared to Wonderland. Besides, her family has done nothing but treat her badly, so why go back? What was so appealing about going back? Wonderland was far more interesting, and Mark definitely would've stayed instead of going back to the real world. He sighed, and Youngjae started picking up on Mark's slight distress. He had a feeling as to why Mark was growing irritated, especially since the part where Hatter talks to Alice just passed.

 

“You okay, Mark?” Youngjae questioned, only to feel Mark shake his head.

“Why did Alice go back? Why not stay?” Mark questioned, sounding quite upset.

“She wanted to answer her own questions, Mark. Like what other land is out there, mysteries to discover, and she had people too, Mark.” Youngjae explained from his viewpoint.

“Yeah, but her 'people' weren't nice; and the this world is so boring now after being in Wonderland, who would go back?” Mark questioned.

“It's like The Wizard Of Oz, Mark; She just wanted to go home.” Youngjae continued gently.

“I haven't seen that movie. Besides, there are so many mysteries to discover in Wonderland, and she could just call Wonderland her home.” Mark almost pouted.

“What would you do, Mark?” Youngjae questioned with interest.

“I would stay.” Mark said without hesitation.

“Really?” Youngjae questioned.

“Mm-hm.” Mark nodded in confirmation.

“What about me? Youngjae questioned, honestly a bit hurt.

“Well, the White Queen said Jabberwocky blood can send her back home _if she wishes_ , which can indirectly imply that the blood of a Jabberwocky can do other things. The White Queen is also really good at potions, something she demonstrates in the movie. So, I would come back for you, and take the both of us back to Wonderland.” Mark said as if he had planned this whole thing (which he had).

“Hm, really?” Youngjae questioned, moving his head back and looking down at Mark.

“Yeah, of course! I don't want to be anywhere you aren't.” Mark said, moving so he was straddling Youngjae and looking down at him.

“Is that so?” Youngjae questioned, holding Mark's hips,

“Yeah, you're my Youngjae and I go where you go.” Mark said with a nod.

“What if I don't want to go to Wonderland?” Youngjae questioned, and Mark looked visibly sad.

“What?” Mark questioned.

“I said, what if I don't want to go to Wonderland?” Youngjae questioned again.

“Well...” Mark paused, “Well then I'd try to convince you, and if you didn't I guess I'd just stay here then. Or try to see if I can visit Wonderland every once in a while.” Mark said with a bit of sadness, ad Youngjae's heart clenched.

“You'd stay here for me? Even with how much you love Wonderland?” Youngjae questioned, sounding quite surprised.

“Well yeah, I told you I go where you go.” Mark said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“I'd go to Wonderland for you any day, but I think such chivalry deserves a treat.” Youngjae said and Mark's ears perked up.

“Treat?” Mark questioned and Youngjae nodded.

“Yep, so go get ready and we'll go somewhere to eat.” Youngjae confirmed, lightly patting Mark's hips.

“We go out to eat all the time.” Mark said with confusion.

“Yeah, but we don't go to eat at that sushi place a lot.” Youngjae teased and Mark tensed, gripping Youngjae's shoulders tightly as his tail swished quickly.

“Sushi?!” Mark immediately questioned, face almost awkwardly close to Youngjae's as he all but pinned him to the couch.

“Yes, that's what I said isn't it?” Youngjae laughed, “Go get ready, I'll meet you by the front door.” Youngjae smiled as Mark leaped off of him to quickly go get ready.

 

Youngjae lied there for a moment, letting his laughter fade off into a small chuckle. It had been a little while since the both of them went to Mark's favourite sushi place. Lately Youngjae had been super busy with work and meetings, and a lot of other stuff Mark would definitely consider boring. Today he had gotten off early and he had decided he wanted to watch a movie with Mark in the theatre room, which is how they ended up in here. Mark was very insistent on wanting to watch Alice In Wonderland though, and who was Youngjae to go and deny him? Especially when he animatedly talked about how he's always heard people in talk about it, but he never got to watch it. Even if Mark wasn't so insistent Youngjae's would've let Mark put it on anyway; Youngjae honestly didn't care what movie they watched, as long as they were watching it together. In a totally platonic, totally bro-to-bro kind of way. _Totally_.

Youngjae sat up, deciding he should go get changed before Mark comes and starts whining and complaining that Youngjae is 'too slow even for a human'. Youngjae made his way over to his room, deciding he wanted to be a bit more casual today. Youngjae didn't really have a specific style; one moment he could be dressed up all fancy, and the next day you could see him with a simple pair of jeans and a black shirt. It just depended on his mood, and especially the situation if they (or sometimes just himself) were going to be going somewhere fancy. Today they were just going to eat, so Youngjae had the freedom to dress casually. He put on a pair of black skinny jeans, a [black shirt](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/db/f9/cf/dbf9cfc659f503b636b0de5f0b07a260.jpg), and grabbed a [slightly oversized hoodie](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/1b/20/92/1b20924e337e88d56cfcc221b96072b0--got-youngjae-posts.jpg). He slipped on the hoodie after deciding to put on a belt, and looked in the nearby mirror to see if he liked the way he looked. He fiddled around with his hair a bit before deciding to just leave it [parted](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/db/f9/cf/dbf9cfc659f503b636b0de5f0b07a260.jpg) at the side.

He put on a pair of socks and slipped his phone into his pocket before grabbing his keys off of the dresser and leaving the room. He saw Mark in a very much [oversized orange sweater](https://data.whicdn.com/images/255352680/large.jpg) and black skinny jeans, wearing the shoes Youngjae bought him when they first had met. Mark was bouncing slightly by the door, one slender hand already wrapped around the door knob. He smiled when he saw Youngjae, a small blush rising to his cheeks as he noticed how attractive Youngjae looked in such simple attire. Youngjae smiled back, slipping his own shoes on. When Youngjae stood back upright, Mark instantly took his hand and dragged him out the door, and Youngjae quickly closed the door behind him. Youngjae's heart fluttered a bit when Mark took his hand, but Youngjae tried to just brush it off. Youngjae closed his fingers around Mark's hand, letting the hybrid lead the both of them to the car.

Mark was thankful he was the one that was leading, because Youngjae wouldn't be able to see how Mark's blush deepened when Youngjae held his hand too. Mark bit his lower lip, feeling a twisting feeling in his chest. Naturally, he ignored it, not wanting to admit anything to himself. He was happy with this, just their simple friendship and right now Mark didn't want to think about anything else but the two of them and sushi. Mark finally let go of Youngjae's hand when they were at the car, much to Youngjae's disappointment. Youngjae smiled, opening up the door for Mark and closing it once he was inside before getting into the car himself. The drive to the sushi place was a lot different from their first one; the first time they went it was an awkward silence due to Mark's 'disliking' for Youngjae at the time. Now they were talking about quite a few things: how cloudy it was, Mark telling Youngjae that he looked nice today, which led to a compliment war of sorts, and finally they talked about their favourite part of the movie they had just watched.

Mark had said his favourite part was when the Cheshire cat tricked the Red Queen, and Youngjae said his favourite part was when the rabbit threw something at the door of the White Queen's alchemy room. Mark also agreed that it was a very good part, and one of the funniest parts of the movies; which made Youngjae also agree that the Cheshire tricking the Red Queen was also a very good part of the movie. At that, Mark smiled a bit, happy that Youngjae thought his favourite part was a good one. Mark's eyes lit up when they finally arrived at the sushi place, only to pout when Youngjae announced that they were closed. Mark was really hoping for sushi, he got himself all psyched up for it and everything. Youngjae took Mark's hand, making Mark blush a little once again.

 

“I'm sorry, Mark; I didn't know they were closed today.” Youngjae apologized.

“It's okay, let's just go somewhere else.” Mark said with a sigh.

“What did you want?” Youngjae asked and Mark shrugged.

“I dunno now, let's just look and see what's around here.” Mark offered and Youngjae nodded and a small smile.

“Alright, just let me know if you see anything, okay?” Youngjae offered, glancing over at Mark as he drove back onto the road

“Hey,” Mark pointed slightly to the right, “What about there?”

“Hmm?” Youngjae squinted at the places, “Oh! Sure,” He exclaimed after finally reading it, “It looks a little busy, so it must be good, right?” Youngjae smiled at Mark for a second before finding a parking spot.

 

Youngjae took Mark's hand and helped him out, the bell on Mark's collar ringing against his tag when he hopped out. Mark gently closed the door behind him, Youngjae's hand still in Mark's. Mark smiled gently at Youngjae when he opened the door for him and motioned for him to walk though first, their hands disconnecting. Mark, of course, went through first and noted how nice the place looked. Something seemed a bit off, and Mark tried to place his finger on it. The restaurant's customers were almost all men, with only a couple women being in the place. Mark guessed that this wasn't _exactly_ an odd thing, but it still didn't seem right. Most of the customers had hybrids at the table, or hybrids coming to the table, and those that didn't still had a menu in their hands; another thing Mark noted as odd. Youngjae was a bit oblivious at first until he actually took a look around, and the two of them shared a look.

 

“Should we...Go somewhere else?” Youngjae asked, not sure if he was comfortable here.

“Uhhh, I dunno,” Mark looked around again, “Seems like an odd place doesn't it?”

“Yeah, like I feel like I'm going to order the special and get a bag of cocaine.” Youngjae said, half joking, and Mark laughed a bit.

“At least you'll have a good time.” Mark joked back.

“I don't know if that's what I'd call-” Youngjae started with a smile.

“Hello! Welcome! We don't often get someone that already has a hybrid.” The waiter said, and Youngjae nodded with furrowed brows.

“Right, well lucky day then?” Youngjae questioned, and Mark linked both of his arms around Youngjae's nearest one.

“Well, you two will be having a bit of extra fun then, yes?” The waiter asked and Youngjae began to feel _very_ uncomfortable.

“I-I think we'll just-” Youngjae started to make an excuse to leave.

“Of course,” Mark flashed a charming smile to the waiter, “We were wanting to spice it up a bit.”

“Naturally,” The waiter smiled, “Follow me then, we have special booths further back.”

 

Youngjae looked at Mark confused, not sure what the hell the hybrid was doing, but could practically see the gears in Mark's brain turning. O _kay, what the hell is going on?_ Mark very quietly whispered for Youngjae to play along and turn on the charm, which Youngjae did without any further questions. He trusted Mark and whatever crazy, mysterious plan he had hatching in his brain. The man led them past the tabled, and the both of them noticed how some of the tables closed their curtains once a hybrid arrived at the booth, or when they passed by. Youngjae was beginning to connect the dots, and he lost his appetite; he hoped this place wasn't doing what he thought they were doing. Youngjae hoped that this place wasn't running some illegal hybrid slave practices, maybe he should call his connections at the police station. No, a call would be too noticeable, but he could text Jackson and tell him what was going on, along with some instructions.

Youngjae would need a bit more proof though, reasonable cause as the cops called it, and an idea struck his brain; he could use this app that let him record audio while sharing it with another person. His friend, who was a higher ranking officer, had programmed it into his phone when they had first teamed up. Jaebum was one of the good guys, along with the police force he was in charge of. The both of them wanted the same things; for scum like this to be put in prison cells for life. Jaebum was one of the people who helped get his bill/law thing passed, and he owes a lot to Jaebum, but the older didn't mind; they both did favors for one another, and they both had the same end goal, so no harm done. Youngjae decided he'd text both Jackson and Jaebum because Jackson practically owned the shelter he worked at, and Youngjae had a feeling there was going to be a lot of hybrids that needed safe places to be at.

 

“Here we are mister...?” The waiter trailed off.

“Choi.” Youngjae said simply, flashing his charming smile.

“Oh, as in Choi Industries?” The waiter questioned, eyes almost bugging out of his skull.

“The one and only, live and in person.” Youngjae said, practically oozing charm and charisma.

“Oh, pardon my informality then, sir,” The waiter bowed, “Here's one of our luxury booths.”

“No harm done, you didn't know, but now you do.” Youngjae dismissed, gently guiding Mark into the booth.

“Of course, sir,” The waiter did a smaller bow, “Here is the menu,” The waiter handed a folded and laminated paper to him.

“Thank you.” Youngjae said, taking the menu and beginning to scan over it.

“Can I start you two off with something to drink?” The waiter asked.

“Yes, you can, what's your best wine?” Youngjae questioned.

“Well, sir, I personally like our Domaine Leroy Chambertin Grand Cru, but if that's not your taste then I have other wines you might like.” The waiter offered and Youngjae raised a brow.

“What year?” Youngjae questioned easily.

“1990, sir.” The waiter answered and Youngjae smiled up at him.

“Perfect, what would you describe it as?” Youngjae questioned, his years of being such a successful businessman made him picky with his wines.

“Ah, well it's very earthy and fruity,” The waiter explained, “It's a deep red with red cherries, plums, and a sweet spice with a bit of an earthy flavor.”

“Perfect, I'll have a glass of that then, but don't let me have any more,” Youngjae pretended to scold, “I still have to drive home.” Youngjae then broke out into a smile.

“Of course, sir,” The waiter smiled, “You can count on me.”

“What would you like, Mark?” Youngjae questioned, looking over at the hybrid.

“Hmm,” Mark pretended to ponder, “I think I'll just have some cold milk.” Mark smiled back, not wanting to get a weird look from the waiter if he ordered something else.

“Of course, right away,” The waiter did another small bow, “And you have a lovely breed, sir.”

“Why thank you, I'm sure he's flattered to hear that,” Youngjae looked to Mark, putting a hand on his knee, “Isn't that right?”

“Of course, thank you.” Mark forced a shy smile.

 

The waiter left, and Youngjae casually got out his phone to text his two friends. Mark looked over the menu, trying to find what would be the best thing to order for what he was planning out. He wanted to see if he was right, and he most likely was. He had like a 6th sense for this kind of stuff, especially considering the environment he was around for most of his hybrid life. He knew exactly what to look for and he just needed to look over the menu to see what would be the best bet to order. He knew how these sickos worded things, but he wasn't an expert, so he needed to be careful. Youngjae was focused on his phone, one hand still on Mark's knee as to not draw suspicion. Youngjae decided he would first text Jaebum, seeing as how he had a higher priority at the moment.

 

**Youngjae**

We have a situation here,  
most likely a Code ISRIO

**JB**

Woah are you sure?

**Youngjae**

That's what I'm figuring out,  
but it most likely is. I need  
you to audio call and record.

**JB**

Yeah, sure, if it is then  
we'll kick their ass. Call  
you in 5, gonna get the  
chess pieces ready.

**Youngjae**

Alright, I'll be ready. I'm  
calling Jackson and having  
him on standby, that way  
the potential hybrids have  
a place to go to ASAP.

**JB**

Sounds good, make sure  
to send me the address  
and anything else I need  
to know.

**Youngjae**

_[LOCATION FILE ATTATCHED]_

3 story building, most likely  
all 3 floors are all part of  
this one place. Mostly male  
customers.

**JB**

Aren't they always?

 

Youngjae looked around casually, not wanting to seem weird for looking at his phone screen the whole time. Mark took the opportunity to point out a specific choice on the menu, and told him what exactly to order. Mark also instructed that if the water questions then to just insist and remind him that he's Choi Youngjae. Mark also instructed to not lose any of the charisma that he's currently put on, otherwise it'll be weird, and to simply remain calm. Youngjae could do all of those things, especially when there was a possibility that other lives were on the line. Youngjae told Mark that if the waiter caused any further problems then he'd simply request to speak with the manager, like he would normally do. Mark seemed to think it was a good idea judging by his nod, and so Youngjae smiled at him and turned his attention back to his phone to text Jackson.

 

**Youngjae**

Hey, be ready to come  
down to the address  
I'm going to send, I  
might have a ISRIO.

**Jackson**

ISRIO?

**Youngjae**

Illegal Sex Ring In  
Operation, Jackson...

**Jackson**

Right, like I was just  
supposed to know that.

But alright, I'll have  
everything ready at the  
shelter by the time you  
need me. I'm always ready  
to help hybrids, especially  
in situations like that.

 

Youngjae sent a simple okay and set his phone on silent, that way when he got the notification that Jaebum was calling his phone wouldn't go off. Speaking of the devil, Jaebum was calling on Youngjae's phone not even a minute after Youngjae had put his phone on silent. Youngjae put in only one of his wireless headphones, hearing Jaebum's voice ring in his ears. Youngjae of course, couldn't directly reply, so he talked to Jaebum through Mark, who had very quickly caught on when he saw the wireless headphone in the ear that was facing him. Mark gave appropriate, inconspicuous responses for the short and secret conversation that Youngjae and Jaebum was having. Jaebum just asked simple stuff to help out both his team and the future recording of voices. _Do you see a variety of breeds? Is there suspicious activity? Will you be willing to testify in court? Do you swear that you're not ordering with the intention of participating in any illegal acts? Good, then we can start._

 

“Hello sir, here are your drinks,” The waiter announced, “A glass of wine for you sir,” He set the wine down in front of Youngjae, “And a glass of cold milk for you,” He set the milk down in front of Mark.

“Thank you very much.” Youngjae said politely, putting his phone face down on the table.

_Find out if the employees signed a waver releasing a consent of media or something._

“Say, do you have security cameras around here?” Youngjae questioned, “Last time I went to a place similar to this I almost got robbed.” Youngjae lied smoothly.

“Of course sir! We have cameras on each corner of the room, and in front of every other booth. The cameras are always recording both audio and sound, so it's super safe.” The waiter reassured.

“What if it's an employee? Will they even be able to use the footage in court?” Youngjae questioned.

“Of course, every employee signs a release form, so it's all covered.” The waiter explained.

“Well, it doesn't record inside the booth right?” Youngjae said, acting surprised.

“No! No not at all, the booths are completely safe and nothing is recorded.” The waiter reassured.

“Thank you, that really puts my mind at ease.” Youngjae smiled and the man returned it.

“Anytime, it's my job to make all of our customers feel safe,” The waiter said, “So do you two know what you want?”

“Yes, we would like the Black Royal, and I don't know what I want for sides yet so just tab me for everything that way we don't have any problems.” Youngjae ordered coolly and the waiter raised his brows with wide eyes.

“S-Sir? Are you sure sir?” The waiter questioned.

“Of course I'm sure, why wouldn't I be?” Youngjae questioned with furrowed brows.

“It's just that the Black Royal is already really high in price, and so to have everything-” The waiter started to explain, and Youngjae mocked offense.

“Are you saying I can't afford it? Are you trying to insult me?” Youngjae narrowed his eyes, “Do I need to speak with your manager?”

“No! No, sir, my deepest apology!” The waiter tried to recover.

“Well then, unless you want me to get you fired, I suggest you bring me what I asked and promptly then, huh?” Youngjae questioned with an intimidating tone.

“Yes! Yes, right away!” The man said and scurried off.

_Great job, now you know what to do from here. Remember, the code word this time is Midnight._

 

The wait would be short for the two of them, especially since Youngjae put out a threat like he did. He was absolutely sure now, but he couldn't help but wonder what would happen if they just brought out all the sides to a meal. He'd really feel stupid, and he could just imagine the endless teasing he'd get from Jackson. Youngjae looked over at Mark, who looked cute with both of his slender hands around the glass of milk and sipping on it. Mark made eye contact with Youngjae, and he moved his milk from his face to smile at the other. Youngjae chuckled and moved to wipe off the milk mustache Mark was currently sporting. Youngjae's stomach was in knots, and part of him was disgusted with himself over the fact that he was _ordering a hybrid_ like a _monster_ , but the other part of him knew that it was for a better cause. It was for him being able to take down this entire ring, and save all the hybrids that were forced to stay here.

Mark noticed Youngjae's demeanor, and moved one of his hands to told Youngjae's in reassurance, and Youngjae was secretly reminded he had an act to keep up. Youngjae brought Mark's hand up to his lips and gently kissed Mark's knuckles, causing a shade of raspberry to dust itself across Mark's cheeks. Youngjae had never done anything like that before, and while Mark knew it was due to their situation, he still couldn't help the internal chaos he was feeling inside of him. It was a good kind of chaos; the kind you get when a group you really like puts out a new song, or when you find out you aced a test you didn't study for. The attention of both Mark and Youngjae was quickly drawn away when the waiter returned with a smaller person trailing shyly behind him. Youngjae was honestly stunned for a second by this hybrid, who also seemed to be a cat hybrid like Mark. Whoever this hybrid was, was absolutely ethereal.

The hybrid had beautiful jet black hair and ears, accompanied by a silky midnight-black tail that was much thicker and longer than Mark's. The hybrid had been looking at the floor until he had been brought to the table, and looked up to meekly meet the eyes of both Youngjae and Mark. Youngjae could've lost himself in the hybrids black eyes; a lot of people say that brown and black eyes are boring, but those people couldn't be any more wrong. Youngjae could've drowned in the black pools of ink that made his pupil indiscernible from the iris. It was like a raven had cried into the hybrids eyes, staining the pupils with the darkest and most captivating black Youngjae had ever seen. He noticed the [clothes](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DEsYaEVVYAIdNZx.jpg) the hybrid was wearing; a somewhat baggy yet still figure holding long sleeved silk shirt, paired with a pair of black skinny jeans, black socks, and a thick strand of silk gently tied around his neck. Even the shirt couldn't conceal the bruises that were poking out from various places.

 

“His name is Yugyeom, but you can call him whatever you like, isn't that right?” The waiter questioned and the hybrid nodded, “Speak.” The waiter ordered, shoving Yugyeom harshly into the table.

“Y-Yes master, y-you can call me a-anything.” Yugyeom said meekly.

“I think Yugyeom will be just fine, it suits you and your Midnight appearance,” Youngjae complimented, slyly adding in the code word, “I assume he's a cat?”

_Heard you loud and clear, we're coming in soon. Back up is on the way, I'll notify Jackson for you._

“Yes, sir, he's a rare hybrid breed of a panther, which is why he's so expensive but so alluring.” The waiter said, “I hope you're satisfied.”

“Of course I am, he's absolutely stunning.” Youngjae smiled at the waiter who returned it.

“I'm happy to hear, I'll give you some privacy. If you need anything, I'll be around.” The waiter said and Youngjae nodded,

“We'll be in here, but if the doors are closed please don't bother us.” Youngjae said and the man nodded.

_I got ya, Youngjae, just keep the hybrid with you safe and calm._

“Naturally, sir.” The waiter said before disappearing, and all attention turned back on Yugyeom.

“Master, how will you have me?” Yugyeom asked quietly, sliding inside of the booth area while siding the small and slender doors shut and starting to unbutton his shirt.


	6. Busted (Cont.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys me again!! i'm trying to make this timeline match up with the current irl timeline, so if you see any like timeline mistakes please let me know!! also i'm posting this at midnight with a full 24+ hours with no sleep, so if I have any like spelling errors, grammatical issues or anything like that, I'll fix them in the morning.
> 
> P.S. - I just read the word 'timeline' as 'timelime' who am i

“Master, how will you have me?” Yugyeom asked quietly, sliding inside of the [booth area](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/15/e4/96/15e49693f03ef4215d2cd5d70434ec78.jpg) while siding the small and slender doors shut and starting to unbutton his shirt.

Mark was quick to get up and put his hands on top of the younger's, both scaring Yugyeom with his quick movements and stopping him. Yugyeom stared at the red haired hybrid in confusion, wondering how Mark was allowed to do that with his master; Yugyeom's masters never allowed him touch them or anyone else without them telling him to, let alone do anything like that. Yugyeom's never really had experience with being with more than just one person, so the current situation had him truly scared, but he couldn't just say that. He wasn't allowed to, so he was forced to suffer in silence, per usual. Sometimes Yugyeom thought of running away from here, but too many things kept him back. Where would he even go? What about the other hybrids? He couldn't just leave them all here. No, he wouldn't be able to live with himself, especially when it came to the younger ones. Most of the time he was the one taking the beatings in their place, as well as clients instead of them. While he couldn't always save them from being hit, he made sure that they never took clients.

It took a toll on him, and most nights he wouldn't sleep because of it, but he did what he had to do to keep them safe. He'd rather be completely exhausted every day of his life, and suffer instead of them any day. The owners here were disgusting, and he truly hoped they rotted in hell, or got punished in whatever lied on the other side. Yet, while he was disgusted, he still somehow always believed the words he was told. He was beneath humans, and even further beneath the hybrids that resided within society and not in some illegal prostitution restaurant-cover. While he truly believed he was, he couldn't bring himself to think that way about any of the other hybrids. Especially the younger ones. Yugyeom didn't realize he had zoned out, and that his hands were trembling under Mark's gentle grip. Yugyeom wasn't used to contact from another person that wasn't meant to hurt him, save for the hybrids he 'lived' with. Yugyeom's eyes fully dilated out of fear, something that definitely didn't go unnoticed by Mark. Tears prickled Yugyeom's eyes as Mark shook him gently in an effort to bring him back down to earth. Yugyeom blinked back his tears, beginning to apologize.

 

“Yugyeom, stop apologizing, I'm trying to tell you something.” Mark instructed.

“Yes, sir.” Yugyeom whispered, avoiding eye contact.

“Yugyeom, listen to me, you don't ever need to do that again,” At this, Yugyeom looked at Mark in confusion, “We're here to help you all.”

_Yugyeom's heart leaped._

“Are we roleplaying?” Yugyeom questioned, not letting himself get his hopes up.

“What? Yugyeomie, no, I'm being serious,” Mark said, giving Yugyeom a nickname, “We're here to help all of you, but you can't say anything, okay?”

“O-Okay, sir.” Yugyeom nodded, still not convinced.

“Mark, my name is Mark, and this is Youngjae.” Mark introduced, motioning towards Youngjae.

“Youngjae? Choi Youngjae?” Yugyeom asked, eyes on the man in question.

“Yeah, Choi Youngjae, he's not going to-”

“Is...Is he the one that got that bill passed for us?” Yugyeom quietly questioned to Mark.

“Yeah, yeah that's him, you've heard of him?” Mark questioned back.

“Kind of,” Yugyeom directed his eyes to the floor, “I heard my masters talking about how he was making everything more difficult for them.”

“Here, come sit down, we need to talk to you.” Mark said, guiding Yugyeom to the booth.

 

Yugyeom didn't protest, not that he could even if he wanted to. Mark somehow had a very calming and securing aura, and Yugyeom was almost ready to completely trust him without even knowing that much about him. He wondered if this was the way Mark normally was; somehow expelling calming pheromones, or maybe Mark was just naturally and calming person. Yugyeom didn't really know the science of it, he could barely do math and read, but he taught what he did know to the kiddies. Yugyeom's mind was always wandering back to them, thinking of various things. Sometimes if he was able to close his eyes long enough, he pictured all of them actually in society. Sometimes it was Yugyeom having a normal office job, and picking them up from school. Or him attending their graduation. Anywhere but where they actually were, it was no place for a child to grow up, hybrid or not. Yugyeom's mind quickly wandered further, a habit he had picked up as a way to escape the hell that was his life. He spaced out a lot, half the time he didn't even realize it until someone was screaming at him and hitting him.

Which wasn't really all that different from his normal daily routine: wake up, get beat, go serve customers, get beat for not doing it right, serve more customers, another beating, go back to the confinement, another beating, hopefully get dinner for the week, and if he was lucky he'd be blessed with sleep and a shower. Usually they got dinner on Monday's and Monday's only, but Yugyeom could always hope for another day where he got dinner that week. Not that he'd really get any of it, he always gave his to the kids, constantly prioritizing them over his own well-being. A pain suddenly shot through him, starting from his arm and radiating to his shoulder, but he tried not to show the pain he felt. Instead, Yugyeom held one of his arm close to him, he'd been having a bit of trouble with it since the last major beating he got. It was hard to get his hand and fingers to move, but he was sure he was fine.

Even if it wasn't, it's not like Yugyeom could just go up to his master and ask to be taken to the doctor. If you need to go to the doctor, then master sees you as broken, and broken hybrids go to a scary place and aren't seen again. If they are seen again, then it doesn't matter because the hybrids that come back are always crazy. Yugyeom's arm incident happened one day when Yugyeom was being a particularly ' _bad_ _hybrid_ ', and got punished for it. All he had done that day was go to the bathroom before going to a client, but that was a grave mistake. He hasn't repeated his mistake since, and it often worked out for the worse. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, Yugyeom had frequent clients that were into that sort of thing. Yugyeom actually found it gross, but he couldn't refuse them or speak his opinions otherwise he'd be punished. Yugyeom personally thinks master looks for a reason to punish them (not that he'd ever say that out loud), and Yugyeom would be right. Master always told him hybrids think what they're told to think, do what they're told to do and don't put up a fight; even if they don't want to do it, and the good hybrids get rewarded.

The rewards wouldn't seem like much to an outsiders eye, but to Yugyeom and the other hybrids, the rewards were like heaven. As a reward they'd be given another food day that week, they'd get to shower longer than the rest that week, and sometimes master would take you to his office to serve him for the day instead of the other clients. The rewards were few though, Yugyeom only seeing a handful of hybrids get the privilege of having them.  Yugyeom didn't let himself get discouraged too much by the fact that he's only gotten the reward once; he didn't really need extra shower time,  would rather not serve Master instead of the clients (though it was nice to get a break), the food day is what motivated him most, and the warm shower. Another food day means more food for the kids, and he hated the ice-cold showers they were all forced to take. Master was scary, and he's had the unfortunate scenario of serving master a few times, and each time was horrifying. Master liked weird things, and Master especially liked things that Yugyeom despised with every fiber of his being.

Master says it doesn't matter what Yugyeom wants though, just what Master wants. He says that all Yugyeom is alive for is to serve him and make him happy. Yugyeom was one of masters favourites, which wasn't exactly good news for him, but he had a couple of other favourites thanks to a twisted sense of luck. Even though Master always tells him his only purpose is to serve, he still dreams. He'd like to be a dancer one day, if it was ever possible. He's seen some people on the television dance when he passes by it. It's only brief glimpses and small snips, but he loves it. It might be a silly, stupid dream, but it's still Yugyeom's silly, stupid dream. It might be ridiculous, but it gives him hope that he won't be trapped here forever. He mindlessly sat on the edge of the booth, Mark sitting in between Yugyeom and Youngjae. Yugyeom's right hand moved to rest on his left elbow, discreetly trying to get feeling back in his fingers. Bits of the memory of that day flashed through his mind; the feeling of his bones cracking and the metallic scent of blood filling the air. He shook his head to try and remove the thoughts. His eyes darted to Mark, then Youngjae, then the table, and then back to Mark.

 

“Please don't hurt me,” Yugyeom quietly asked in almost a whisper, a short burst of courage fueled by his moment of vulnerability, “Please, I-I won't be able to take it.”

“I'm not going to hurt you, I promise, and neither is Youngjae.” Mark reassured, scooting closer to the youngest.

“I'd never hurt you, I can barely beat Mark at Monopoly without feeling bad.” Youngjae tried to comfort with honestly.

 

Youngjae reached his arm across the table to Youngjae, who stared at it for a moment before realizing that Youngjae was wanting to hold hands. Yugyeom hesitated for a moment before placing his hand in Youngjae's a strange feeling of safety pulling over him enough for him to notice the foreign emotion. He hasn't ever really felt safe before; he's felt a knowing sense when he hears Master's boots, or a prepared feeling when he sees Master with a whip, but never safe. It felt...Nice. Yeah, nice was the word. A bit scary due to how new it is for him, but still nice. Youngjae's thumb gently ran across the back of Yugyeom's hand, and even though he could barely feel it due to the suspected injury to his arm, Yugyeom's heart rate slowly calmed down. Was it just an aura that the both of them gave off that made him feel so calm? Mark took it upon himself to wrap his arms around Yugyeom's free one, getting the attention of the youngest almost instantly. It wasn't a tight hold in the least, is was soft and gentle, almost enough to make Yugyeom believe everything they were telling him. Almost. He wasn't naive.

 

“Yugyeomie, I promise I'm getting you out of here even if it kills me, but I need you to tell me everything.” Mark said with honesty, hoping Yugyeom would open up to him despite how little they've known one another.

“Everything?” Yugyeom asked, avoiding eye contact and his ears swiveling and twitching slightly.

“Yes, Yugyeom, everything,” Mark confirmed, “Please.”

“Y-You don't wanna know,” Yugyeom shook his head, his body slouching into itself slightly, “This is a really weird roleplay.”

“Yugyeom, please-” Mark started.

“I don't like this game.” Yugyeom said, face clearly showing he was uncomfortable.

“Yugyeom,” Mark moved his hand with the intention of making Yugyeom look at him, but his movements were too quick and Yugyeom got scared.

 

Before anyone could do anything, Yugyeom had ripped his arms out from both of their grips and lied belly up on the small space on the floor. His tail was tucked between his legs and his ears were completely flattened against his head, barely even visible. Tears brimmed Yugyeom's eyes as he lifted up his shirt enough to show his stomach, then covering his face with his arms. Youngjae, while unfamiliar with hybrid body language, knew a little bit from some of the things he's been reading on cats (strictly for educational purposes, he doesn't want to feed Mark something he can't have, it's not like he WANTS to look at those cute little fluffy faces all day and okay _MAYBE_ he might like looking at the cats). Youngjae knew that the tail-between-legs thing was a sign of submission, and that flattening the ears meant either he was fearful or submissive. Probably both. Yugyeom being belly up confused him a bit, don't cats only do that if they trust you? Was Yugyeom just trying to show how willing and quick he was to submit to someone?

Youngjae looked to Mark, trying to see if they were both on the same page (or at least the same _chapter_ ). Mark, of course, knew right away what Yugyeom was doing, and what it meant. Yugyeom had gotten scared, fearful of a beating, so he did the thing that a lot of cats (or, at least cat hybrids) do: display submission to avoid conflict and to ease the situation. Yugyeom was definitely trying to display how submissive he was in hopes that he wouldn't get hit. Mark and Youngjae, of course, would never ever hit Yugyeom, but Yugyeom didn't know that. Well, rather, he didn't believe it; something that was normal for a victim of severe abuse in all forms. Mark was far more worried than Youngjae, mostly due to the fact that he knew the weight of the actions that just took place. He knew that Yugyeom was expecting someone to take off his shirt, or to do something more obscene to him, and the thought sickened him. He leaned over to Youngjae, whispering something in his ear about having him go to the restroom for a short while so Mark can talk to Yugyeom as hybrid-to-hybrid.

Youngjae, naturally, agreed because what he saw Yugyeom do was worrying him, and if Yugyeom was more comfortable talking while Youngjae wasn't here, then so be it. Youngjae reminded Mark that he couldn't disappear into the bathroom for long, otherwise they'd draw attention to themselves. Mark, of course, knew this and said whatever he could give would be fine; and with that, Youngjae excused himself to the restroom. The doors quietly shut, yet Yugyeom remained in the same position, chest rising and falling rapidly. Mark crawled his way over to Yugyeom and onto the floor, giving name to his cat-hybrid nature. Mark was on all fours, now by Yugyeom and the tip of his tail twitching back and forth with interest. Mark sniffed Yugyeom, trying to get his scent: chocolate and vanilla. It was intoxicating, but now wasn't the time to be captivated by Youngjae's scent. Or maybe it was. Mark moved to straddle Yugyeom, softly kneading the exposed flesh. It was an action that cats did when feeling playful, friendly, or just content in general. Hopefully, it would ease Yugyeom's nerves.

 

“Do you know you smell like chocolate and vanilla?” Mark asked softly, trying to get the younger to trust him by starting off with a soft question.

“Chocolate and vanilla?” Yugyeom quietly asked after a moment, moving his elbow from his face.

“Mm-hm,” Mark nodded, “It's nice, very calming.”

“Thank you.” Yugyeom said gratefully, especially since it was the sweetest compliment he's ever gotten.

“Would you like to smell me?” Mark questioned, and Yugyeom was hesitant, “It's okay, I don't mind, it's a thing we hybrids do.”

 

Yugyeom seemed to be at an inner conflict with himself, one that Mark couldn't help him solve; Mark could only offer reassurance and soft words, but he was sure Yugyeom would make the move to smell him. Hybrids sniffed one another for scent as a sign of trust and as a display for companionship. Once a hybrid got the scent of another, it would never be forgotten. The said hybrid could pinpoint the location of the other, even if it was in a crowd of people. Then, depending on the reactions that followed, it could also be a sign of a willingness to protect. Mark's soft kneading stopped as Yugyeom slowly sat up, his shirt going back down to cover his stomach. Yugyeom began to lean in and he hesitated for a moment, but Mark moving to expose his neck more was all the motivation that Yugyeom needed to lean in further and take a deep breath. Yugyeom's nose almost touched Mark's neck, but thanks to Yugyeom moving as he sniffed, it didn't. Yugyeom instantly associated Mark's sent to Jasmine tea and honey, an addicting and peaceful fragrance. Mark took this opportunity to take another breath of Yugyeom before he pulled away. Surprisingly, he didn't mind the thought of Youngjae smelling a bit like Yugyeom as well as a bit like himself.

 

“You smell safe,” Yugyeom started, “Like comforting, as if the world couldn't touch me.”

“Yugyeomie, I promise the world won't, okay?” Mark held Yugyeom's face between his slender and cold hands, “I want to keep you safe, Yugyeomie, but I can't do that if you don't tell me.”

“What if master finds out? What if I get punished? What if the others get punished-” Yugyeom began to rant out of worry.

“Hey, hey, hey,” Mark gently pulled the younger into his chest, “It's fine, I'll be here to protect you and so will Youngjae, okay?”

“Do-Do you promise?” Yugyeom questioned, and Mark nodded softly.

“Of course,” Mark held Yugyeom close, somehow managing to get the both of them back onto the couch and in a [cuddling position](https://s.blogcdn.com/www.mydaily.co.uk/media/2013/11/cuddle.jpg).

Their natural cat-cuddling instincts put them in a tangled position, and if you squinted enough they kind of looked like one large octopus. Mark's head rested on the edge of the couch, his eyes able to look at the ceiling if he were to just look straight ahead. Yugyeom had his head on Mark's chest, the rhythm of Mark's heartbeat beginning to calm him enough to be able to speak of the things that've happened to him. Yugyeom was laying with his back touching the cushioned back of the couch, one of his hands clinging onto his own shirt out of a nervous habit. Their tails were unknowingly intertwined, a simple gesture of two cats that have bonded. Mark held Yugyeom gentle yet close, feeling an almost overwhelming urge to protect him and fight to take him out of here. Mark knew he couldn't, rather he couldn't **_and_ ** wouldn't risk spoiling Youngjae's plans. Mark knew that waiting would be for the best, because then it wouldn't just be Yugyeom that would be saved, it would be _**all**_ the hybrids that are kept prisoner here. Mark had already decided a bit ago that Yugyeom would be one of the two people he'd protect fiercely, giving his life if it came to it.

Yugyeom had somewhat a similar feeling, but he still wasn't going to just hand over his complete and total trust to someone he just met. More specifically, someone he just met in a place like this. Regardless of that, Yugyeom felt weird about talking about the things that have happened to him, no matter how unimportant he personally thought they were. Yugyeom didn't go into great detail, maybe he'd do that another time when he felt safer. He told Mark about how he ended up here years ago; how he had been bought from an underground hybrid breeding ring that had already specialized in illegal hybrid prostitution, but how he had only been giving oral at the facility. He told Mark that it wasn't until he came here that he had started giving full services, with Master being the first one to try out his 'new toy'. Mark felt sick to his stomach, he had it bad with his previous owners and stores, but he's never ever had it as bad as Yugyeom. He couldn't even come close. He unconsciously held Yugyeom closer to him and a bit tighter, as if his protective hold would make all the bad things go away. Yugyeom unconsciously felt safer than before, not wanting to admit he was enjoying the moment they were having.

 

“You know, I service all these people who look like they're in bliss when they're using me, but why?” Yugyeom questioned, getting semi-off topic for a moment.

“Hm?” Mark questioned, caught off guard.

“Why do those people have such a good time? It doesn't feel good, but why does it look like it feels good to them?” Yugyeom questioned again.

“Because they're disgusting, perverted human beings who get off on knowing you're not feeling good.” Mark said, pent-up anger seeping into his voice.

“Oh.” Yugyeom said simply, believing what Mark said without a second thought.

“Yugyeom, it's not supposed to feel bad, do you know that?” Mark questioned after another moment of silence, “Yugyeom?” Mark questioned again when another round of silence ensued.

“It's not?” Yugyeom asked quietly.

“No, Yugyeomee, it's supposed to feel good, and if it feels bad it means that the person your with isn't doing things right. Someone who cares about you will make sure it feels good.” Mark explained shortly.

“Are you sure?” Yugyeom questioned skeptically.

“Of course, I'd never lie to you. Someone who loves you will always make sure it feels good.” Mark reassured.

“But Master loves me?” Yugyeom said quietly, more-so questioning to himself.

“No, ' _ **Master**_ ' doesn't, if he did then he wouldn't treat you so badly. Someone who loves you wouldn't force you to have sex with him and all these other people.” Mark explained.

“Well...Sometimes if I'm really good I get extra shower time and warm water.” Yugyeom tried to excuse.

“What? Yugyeom, have you not told me everything?” Mark questioned, and Yugyeom shook his head after a moment of silence, “I need you to tell me everything.”

“O-Okay.” Yugyeom agreed quietly.

 

This time Yugyeom told Mark about the beatings and punishments; how if he refuses Master he gets punished, if he refuses _anyone_ then he gets punished. If he goes to the bathroom without permission then he gets punished, and how he takes punishments for the younger ones. When Mark asked about the punishments, Yugyeom recalled one time where he was hit so hard he didn't wake up for half a day, and another time where Master brought Yugyeom into a dark room with his other friends and made him do his 'job', but he didn't tell him about the one that made him lose feeling in his arm. He also briefly confessed that it drained him to have to take so much, literally everything, in place of the kids, but he wouldn't have it any differently. Yugyeom then talked about what he had for dinner on meal day if he didn't give his to the younger ones, and how he got to sleep maybe an hour or two if he was lucky. He also told Mark about the fact that nobody could go to the doctor, even though they were allowed, because a doctor visit means you're broken; and if you're broken, then bad things happen to you.

 

"Like I said, sometimes we get rewards if we're really good," Yugyeom said a little too excitedly, "Like an extra food day, or warm water instead of cold water, and we get to serve Master all day instead of being out here."

"Yugyeom, those aren't rewards, that's disgusting. How often do you even get those _**rewards**_?" Mark questioned as Youngjae re-entered the booth.

"Uh, well..." Yugyeom paused, "I've gotten one once."

"And how long ago was that?" Mark questioned further, attempting to have Yugyeom see his point.

"I...I don't know, is it still November?" Yugyeom questioned, and the oldest two shared a look.

"Yugyeom, it's August of 2018." Mark said after a quiet moment.

"O-Oh," Yugyeom stayed silent, "That's a long time."

"When did you think it was?" Youngjae questioned.

"Uhh I thought it was November something..." Yugyeom trailed off, "Of 2016?"

"Yugyeom, does he not let you know what day it is?" Mark inquired.

"No," Yugyeom shook his head, "We don't have any calendars or anything, Master says calendars will give us a reason to think we're should be treated better, he says they'll plague our mind and make us disobey."

"That's sickening-" Youngjae started.

"You said he beats you?" Mark cut Youngjae off, and Yugyeom nodded without making eye contact, "Is that why you can't move your arm that well?"  
  


Yugyeom froze. His heart sped up, and he could hear his pulse and blood rushing in his ears. The highest amount of panic that could possibly fill one person, was doubled on Yugyeom. His chest started hurting, and he could feel a definite tug on the back of his mind. Yugyeom felt his whole world crashing down in one second. Stress filled him to the brim, overflowing from the already existing amount of stress. He felt himself slipping into a smaller head-space, something he only does once and a while. Like after that day where he was forced to be in that dark room with Master's friends. Or when he was locked in a small metal box that was hidden in the floor.

_How did they find that out? How did they figure that out? Was I not as careful as he thought I was? Was this some type of trick that my Master set up? Am I in trouble now? Are they just playing with me? Idiot, idiot, idiot, idiot! I should've been more careful. I should've been more discreet about it. Master's right, I'm nothing but a bad hybrid. Why would they ask that if they just wanted to help? No, they're definitely talking with Master, now I'm going to get beat within an inch of my life. They'll tell him that I'm disobeying, that I'm conspiring, and I'll be forced on the streets or the underground and_ **oh my god** _what's going to happen to my babi-_

 

"Yugyeom, Yugyeom, Yugyeom, hey, you're okay," Mark was quickly comforting with his hands on either side of Yugyeom's face, "You're okay, I'm not going to get you in trouble."

"Bad, bad, bad, bad. Yugyeom is bad, Yugyeom's going to get into big trouble." Yugyeom whispered, his voice regressing into a bit of a childish tone.

"Yugyeom, shhh, calm down, it's oka-" Mark tried to reassure with a soft voice.

"NO!" he pushed Mark back roughly, "Yugyeom is a bad boy! Yugyeom can't move his arm and now he's in trouble!" Yugyeom said with a raised voice.

"Yugyeom, you're not-" Mark tried.

"Yugyeom tried to warn Big Yugyeom but now everything is ruined," Yugyeom talked to no one in particular, "Well Yugyeom isn't leaving! Yugyeom is staying right here with Jisung! Big Yugyeom needs to protect the little ones-"

"Big Yugyeom?" Youngjae questioned, not sure what was going on.

"Uh," Mark began, not sure what was happening either, "How little are they?"

"Jisungee is 16, and he's the youngest, Mark turned 19 a few days ago." Yugyeom said after a moment of hesitation.

"I'm killing him." Mark said abruptly, making a move to get up and literally strangle Yugyeom's 'Master'.

"NO! LEAVE JISUNG AND MARK ALONE!" Yugyeom said, throwing himself back and reaching to grip Mark's leg.

"Mark," Youngjae stopped him by standing up and grabbing his wrist, "Ma-"

"No! Don't you 'Mark' me, Youngjae. Those are  _kids_ back there! Actual children! This is fucking sick, Youngjae. I've been holding myself back because I didn't want to ruin the plan you made, but this," Mark ripped his wrist out from Youngjae's grip, " _This_ is where I draw the fucking line."  
  


While Mark and Youngjae were having a little argument, Yugyeom's sensitive ears picked up on a noise. It was too faint for Youngjae to hear, and Mark was too preoccupied to consciously notice the noise, but Yugyeom had a feeling he knew what it was. He became still as his ears twitched to better hear the noise, eyes zoning out.  _'Stop! Let Jisung go! Take me, but leave him alone! He's too young!'_  Yugyeom instantly recognized it as Mark, _'_ **No, he has to serve a client, and you're an adult now.** _'_   Yugyeom recognized it as his Master.  _'You're fucking sick, let him go!' 'GET OFF HIM!' 'CHENLE NO!' '_ **You'd dare bite your Master, you fucking brat?!** _' 'DON'T HIT HIM!' 'Where's Yugyeomee?! I want Yugyeomee!'_ Yugyeom instantly sprang up, the head-space Yugyeom was once in quickly melting away, only to reveal an anger that could rival Lyssa. Any meekness he had was replaced with a protective anger, the kind that you see when a mother is protecting her cubs. This was the last god damn straw, and Yugyeom was going to kill the man with his bare hands.  
  


"Get out of my fucking way." An angry voice demanded as he shoved himself past Mark.

"Y-Yugyeom, what are you doing?" Mark questioned as the youngest stormed towards the door of the booth.

"Doing what I should've done to that fucking man when he first brought the children here. I'm going to fucking kill him if it's the last thing I fucking do," Yugyeom said but paused at the door, "If your help gets here and I'm unconscious, you be sure they take care of them first."  
  


Yugyeom didn't wait for anyone to stop him, or for anyone to ask anymore questions, or even for a confirmation; he had a very short window to attack the man while he was still off guard, and he had more important things to worry about than Mark or Youngjae being confused. Yugyeom was going to trust that they were telling the truth, and if they weren't then Yugyeom would figure it out when he got to that point. Yugyeom flew down the hallway, avoiding all the 'waiters' that tried to stop him. Youngjae looked to Mark in slight panic before going to inform Jaebum of what happened, and Mark zoned out as he tried to hear whatever it was that Yugyeom had heard. ' _I SAID LEAVE HIM ALONE, YOU MONSTER_!' ' **I'll do what I fucking want with him! He's MY fucking hybrid, who are you to tell a HUMAN, much less your MASTER what to do?! Do I need to teach you all a fucking lesson?!** ' ' _I DON'T FUCKING CARE, LET GO OF HIM! HE'S ONLY 16 YOU DISGUSTING-'_  Small high-pitched screams were heard, ' _MARK! MARK! WHAT DID YOU DO?! LET ME GO! MARK ARE YOU OKAY?!_ ' A crying voice frantically asked.

A crying voice frantically asked. Oh my god, were those the kids Yugyeom was talking about? No wonder why Yugyeom looked so fucking pissed. Mark quickly shut the booth door, snatching the phone from Jaebum as tears threatened to spill from his own eyes, anger mixing inside of him.  
  


"Jaebum? Hey, we don't know each other, but I'm Mark and I'm-" Mark began.

"Yeah, you're Youngjae's friend or boyfriend or whatever." Jaebum finished.

"Yeah, okay there's fucking kids here, get in here NOW. I don't care if you're waiting on ambulances or more back up, get in here NOW. The youngest is 16, and he's trying to get the youngest to fuck a client, and if you don't get in here ASAP I promise you that man is leaving in a body bag." Mark said before handing the phone to Youngjae.

"Mark," Youngjae called and Mark looked back, "Make sure you break his face."

"I'll break more than his face." Mark said with a small smile that disappeared as soon as he left the booth.

Yugyeom's pupils constricted into one thin line, not that anyone but a hybrid would be able to tell. His claws were out, and they wrapped around the silk that tied his neck and snapped the fabric apart. Silent but quick feet were making their way to the stairs so he could get to where the others were, his hybrid speed taking him far faster than he would be going if he was simply a human.  They all lived in a very cramped space on the third floor, there was barely enough room to breathe in there. It was a space that could hold, at max maybe 15-20 hybrids and still be livable, but they didn't care about livable. That's why there's about 40 hybrids minimum living in such a small space, not that anyone that they worked for cared enough. Heavy steel doors echoed throughout the stairwell as Yugyeom threw them back violently, the metal roughly colliding with the nearby wall before slamming back shut. Yugyeom didn't pause to take a breath before he was flying up two flights of stairs to get to where he knew they were. His heart sped up, desperately trying to pump enough blood through his system to keep him going.

He skipped steps as his legs carried him up the stairs at a quicker pace than he had been running, the still-overheard conversation motivating him more than enough to push his body to go faster and faster.  _'DID YOU HURT YUGYEOM TOO?! IS THAT WHY HE'S NOT COMING?!'_ **'What I do with MY hybrids is none of your concern, you fucking brat. Why would I tell a worthless hybrid like yourself?'**   _'Please! Please let him go!' 'If don't let him go I swear I'll-'_ **'You'll what? I hit you once, and I knocked out your little Mark, what makes you think I won't fucking beat you into submission?'** _'You're sick!' 'J-Jisung, I'm sorry-' 'It's okay Mark, you tried, don't blame yourself. I love you, Mark, you're a great big brother-'_ **'Shut the fuck up, you filthy hybrids aren't allowed to have emotions like that.'** _'Don't tell me what I can and can't feel! We all love Mark, he's three times the man you'll ever be!'_ **'Maybe when I give you over to the client, I'll take Mark back to my office and-'**

Yugyeom had launched himself at his so called Master with a [roar ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlMHz-eQdDA)that would rival even the greatest of panthers, digging his claws into the ribcage of the disgusting man and savagely biting down on his neck. Jisung was let go, and he tumbled to the floor but the others were quick to drag him back and out of reach of the man that claimed to own them. Jaemin had quickly tried to drag Mark back to sit with Jisung, so that he would be out of reach too. Jaemin hit the floor as he only managed to drag a semi-conscious Mark a few inches away, but thankfully Jeno saw and quickly moved to help him. Mark was barely conscious enough to help move himself back, and register Yugyeom with a tight hold on the much bigger man that had previously hit him. After Jeno had successfully moved Mark, he looked around to see if anyone else could help, only to realize that half of the hybrids were out serving clients at this time of day; the half that weren't were either too weak to even move, out being 'taught lessons', or in the sensory room as punishment (which was frightening, because it literally deprived you of all senses).

"What do you think you're doing you fucking shithead?!" The 'master' exclaimed, now furious and in pain.

Yugyeom only [growled](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBhaObzdO-c), sounding true to his panther roots, and if the younger boys didn't recognize it as Yugyeom then they'd be terrified. Luckily, Mark was the one who muttered out a very questioning 'Yugyeom?' when he first recognized him, which caused a domino-effect realization in the others.

The man sat up and forcefully threw his backside on the floor, successfully knocking the wind out of Yugyeom; and while the panther let go which left room for the man to get up, he quickly flipped back onto his fours. Yugyeom glared up at the man in front of him, eyeing him up and down, almost as if he was assessing his prey. Yugyeom clearly heard a pair of footsteps racing up the stairs, and the faintest sound of people entering the building; yelling things like 'put your hands up!', 'Everyone on the floor NOW!'. Those things didn't matter to Yugyeom, all that mattered was tearing this disgusting bastard apart. The man that always claimed to be their Master put his hand to his neck where Yugyeom had bit him, trying to stop the bleeding.

Yugyeom took the opportunity to nuzzle himself up to the leg of his 'Master', feigning remorse. His claws retracted as he wrapped his arms around his leg, looking up at the man with doe-eyes, and the man simply chuckled.

"What, did you realize how fucking stupid you are? Begging for my forgiveness? It's a little too fucking late," The man sighed as he looked at Yugyeom, "But you're so damn fuckable, aren't you?"

Yugyeom took this exact moment to bring out his claws again and sink them into the leg of his 'Master', and sink his sharp teeth into his lower thigh the the fabric of his tux. Yugyeom tasted blood, but it only made his feral side want to rip him apart more than he did before. The man cried out in pain, frantically trying to get the hybrid off by wiggling his leg and trying to physically pry him off. When that didn't work (obviously), the man resorted to using his other foot to kick Yugyeom in the ribs, and when the hybrid let go enough he hit him in the throat, sending the hybrid flying back.

Yugyeom found it hard to breathe, and a small trail of blood left the corner of his mouth to make a crimson trail along the side of his face. Luckily though, the blood wasn't his, but rather that of the man he had just bit. The man picked Yugyeom up roughly by the arm, with Yugyeom barely even able to stand up before he was punched square in the jaw. Then again in the nose, and twice more in the eye. The man forced the hybrid to his feet, using one arm to hold Yugyeom's behind his back by the elbows, and the other to hold onto the hybrid's hip.

"You filthy, rotten hybrid," The man said darkly, "Maybe I should make you bleed like you made me bleed," The man forcefully grinded himself against a very loudly growling Yugyeom, "Maybe I should do it in front of your little kiddies so they can be taught a lesson through you, hmm?" The man asked as Yugyeom frantically tried to escape.

"Get off of me you sick pedophile." Yugyeom warned, turning his head enough to spit blood on his captor.

"Oh, so that's how you want to fucking play it?" The man threatened back, his hand moving from Yugyeom's hip to keep his head in place, "You do you fucking like this?" The man questioned before spitting back on him.

Yugyeom squirmed, both trying to get away and wipe the spit off of him, but his sick 'Master' just chuckled darkly.

"I bet you fucking like that, you god damn slut." The man said, and Yugyeom heard the sound of his belt buckle.

"Let him go! Get off!" Jisung yelled from across the room, being held back by almost everyone.

"Jisung, you stay over there," Yugyeom demanded, "Don't any of you dare come over here, and look away."

"Hmm, over there or over here, they'll still see my cock in you." The man whispered darkly, moving his dick out of his pants.

That's when Yugyeom got him.

Yugyeom sunk his nails into the man's most sensitive part of his body, making the man cry out loudly and shove Yugyeom very roughly into the concrete floor. Yugyeom's head hit the floor with a loud  _'thud'_  before he was able to catch himself. The world was now much blurrier than it was before, and his head pulsated with pain, and he barely had enough sense of his nerves to turn himself on his back.

"What the FUCK are you thinking, you worthless fucking hybrid?!" The men exclaimed, tucking himself back in but leaning on the wall, "ANSWER ME!" He demanded when Yugyeom was silent.

Yugyeom only groaned, his brain not currently able to focus on anything else except trying to repair whatever damage was done.

"I said ANSWER ME YOU USELESS SLUT!" He demanded again, this time kicking Yugyeom in the side.

A very small and surprised squeak left his throat as he turned to his side, starting to curl up as an auto-response. The man demanded an answer, kicking Yugyeom's ribs and earning a sickening  _crack_. Unknown to both of them, Mark had managed to get to the doorway, and was quickly shuffling all seven of the younger ones out, keeping his promise to Yugyeom no matter how much it pained him to see Yugyeom being treated like that. They had a mutual understanding that the children were the most important thing, and Mark had another swell of anger when he saw a few of them trying to carry another out. **_Oh, this mother fucker was definitely dead meat._** Youngjae had finally caught up with the both of them, Jaebum close behind him, and led the young ones over to a paramedic that was nearby, who then took them to her stationed ambulance. After another quick glance around the room from Mark to make sure none of the children were still in here, he began to move into the room.

Mark had taken his place along the opposite wall, hunched over in a position that was definitely evident that he was ready to pounce. Yugyeom moved his hands to try and stop the painful kicks, but the man only kicked harder as Yugyeom tried to push his foot away with his hands. Yugyeom spit up a small amount of a crimson color, going into a coughing fit before finally going limp against the blows. Before Youngjae could stop him, Mark had already taken off full-speed towards the asshole that dared to call himself 'Master'. Mark let out a very feline hiss, his claws digging into the man's eye sockets. Mark was a very petite hybrid, which made him very limber and agile, and even more so once his cat DNA was added in. He may not be the strongest man in the world, but he can still take someone down if he needs to. Thin legs hooked themselves under the now surprised man's underarm, which successfully prevented him from throwing fists at Mark. There was a struggle, Mark noticing a bite wound that was starting to try to heal, and directed a set of his claws at reopening the wound.

Mark hissed again when he felt a hand on his back, until he realized that it was just Youngjae. Mark quietly hissed through his teeth, irritated at getting interrupted in the middle of the excitement. He glanced behind him, seeing someone who he assumed to be Jaebum (who else would be dressed like that, honestly). A huff left his lungs, glaring down at his target before hopping off of him with a graceful jump. Youngjae instantly put his arms around the hybrid, pulling him towards his side as he quickly backed away. Mark, however, had other plans. While Youngjae was going to wait until the man was in cuffs to move inside the room (like he was instructed to do by Jaebum himself), Mark was very intent on getting to Yugyeom _right this second_. After a very short moment of struggling from Mark, his petite frame paid off once again as he wiggled free and quickly took a protective crouch directly above Yugyeom. 

"Sir, put your hands up where I can see them!" Jaebum ordered loudly, gun cocked.

"Or what? You'll shoot me?" The man tried to pull Jaebum's punk card, until he was shot in the arm.

"Next one will be in your god damn back if you don't listen you sick fuck." Jaebum threatened.

The man stole a glance downward, eyeing a hissing Mark and an unconscious Yugyeom.

"Don't even think about it, Kim." Jaebum warned, calling the man by his last name, "Turn around, hands in the air. Now."

"Alright, alright." Kim said, slowly raising his hands in the air and beginning to turn around, "I'm turning around." He said before making a sudden move to kick Mark, and was met with a bullet in the stomach.

"I told you to listen." Jaebum said when the man went down, "Shame you thought I was lying when I warned you," He got out his cuffs and walked over to the man, "Don't worry, you'll survive the bullet, can't say for how you'll survive behind bars."

With the assurance that the man was no longer a threat, Mark directed his full attention towards a still unconscious Yugyeom. Mark quietly let out a meow, a sound that clearly showed his sadness and distress over the younger hybrid. Mark gently nudged the younger with his nose, still not getting any response from him. A tear ran down his face as he let out a more distressed meow, tail tucking between his legs. Kim was hauled off by Jaebum, and a swarm of paramedics took his place. Youngjae quickly went over to Mark, sadness filling his lungs and throat as he swallowed a lump. He wanted so badly to just break out into a sob right then and there, but Mark needed him more than Youngjae needed to cry. Youngjae looked over at the few paramedics that were making their way over to them so they could tend to Yugyeom. He knew they wouldn't be able to do that, not with Mark taking a too-protective stance. Youngjae gently put a hand on Mark's back, startling him, but he very quickly calmed once he knew it was just Youngjae. Mark buried his head in Youngjae's neck as he cried, feeling like a failure.

One of the paramedics, probably the one with the most experience, came over but was quickly stopped when Mark let out a very angry hiss. She kept her voice gentle and calm as she spoke, but what really calmed Mark was Youngjae gently whispering to him to let her go over to Yugyeom. With Mark no longer showing aggression, she quickly moved forward and began inspecting him.

"He's lost a little bit of blood, and I see a bit of bruising," She began to rattle off to the other paramedics around her, "He has a pulse but barely, I'm almost afraid to move him."

"He was kicked in the ribs and stomach a lot, I think I heard something crack." Mark quickly added, and she immediately went to gently feel Yugyeom's ribs.

"They're definitely broken, did you see him have any trouble breathing?" She questioned to Mark, who tried to calm his cries enough to speak.

"Y-Yeah, he had coughed up some blood and then stopped moving." Mark said, but remembering it only made him cry harder and hide further in Youngjae's neck.

"He hasn't moved this whole time." Youngjae added, hugging Mark tightly.

"He might have internal bleeding, Moon put him down as top priority." She called out to one of the others, "He's a male cat hybrid-"

"Panther, and his name is Yugyeom." Mark corrected.

"Okay, okay get blood type O on standby," She instructed, "Get him on the gurney stat."

"Are you gonna fix him?" Mark questioned quietly.

"We're gonna do our best, okay? We have the best people in the city at the hospital he's going to," She reassured, "What's your name?"

"Mark." He said simply.

"Alright, I'm Jiwoo, I'm the head paramedic." She introduced quickly, "Mark you seem like you and Yugyeom know one another really well, can you do me a favour?" She asked, and he nodded, "Alright, I'm gonna need you to give Yugyeom a little pep-talk for me. He's going to need a bit of encouragement to pull out of this. Think you can do that?"

"Yeah, yeah of course." Mark took Youngjae's hand, leading him as he moved.

He quietly moved around the paramedics, choosing to drop Youngjae's hand as he crouched down on his shins to talk quietly in Yugyeom's ear. He could see Jiwoo checking Yugyeom's pulse before he talked, only to shake her head with a sad sigh. Was she trying to get Yugyeom's pulse to increase before they moved him? Is that what the pep-talk is for? Mark cleared the questioned from his head, he didn't have time to sit and ponder what everything meant. A deep breath filled his lungs as he tried to think of something that Yugyeom would consider fighting for, and it hit him like a truck.

"Yugyeom, I know you can hear me, and I have something I need to ask of you," Mark began quietly, "I know you're hurting, and I know you just want to never wake up, but I have some really good news for you," Still no response, "That man? They've cuffed him and he got shot twice, and I might have blinded him in one eye."

A twitch of a finger.

"The kids are safe, they're being examined by paramedics right now and will be going to the hospital soon," His hand twitched this time, "And I can ask that they bring them to the one you're at, but I need you to pull through this. If not for me, then for them."

Yugyeom's eyes scrunched slightly,

"Don't you want to see them all smiling and going to school? Don't you want to see them graduate? See them be happy and successful?" Mark questioned, "To see them make friends, to see them just be kids?"

Yugyeom inhaled deeply, a cough coming right afterwards along with a loud groan.

"We've got him! We've got him! We've got to get him to the hospital now!" Jiwoo ordered loudly.

"Yugyeomee," Mark hovered over the younger's face with happy tears, "I'm so happy to see you breathing." Mark caressed his face gently.

"M...Mark," Yugyeom paused to breathe, "It's...Over?"

"Shhh, don't talk a lot right now," Mark smoothed Yugyeom's hair, "But yes, it's all over."

Yugyeom actually smiled the biggest he has ever smiled.

"You make sure you stick around, you hear me? I will personally fling myself into the other side and bring you back." Mark playfully threatened, and Yugyeom managed a breathy chuckle.

"I will...For them," Yugyeom paused, "And you guys."

"Hey, my name is Jiwoo, can you tell me yours?" The paramedic asked as the gurney was brought near.

"Yugyeom." He said shortly after a minute.

"Do you know what day it is?" She asked.

"Something....in August?" Yugyeom questioned before being raised onto the gurney via a blanket.

Mark moved out of the way, quickly clinging onto Youngjae, who instantly wrapped his arms around the hybrid. He let a happy tear leave his eye, sniffling as he wiped it away. He was so relieved that Yugyeom was going to be okay, and even though he hadn't talked to him that much, he still felt greatly attached. Mark, obviously, heard Youngjae sniffle and looked up at his face to see what was wrong. Upon questioned if he was crying, Youngjae simply let out a nervous short laugh, wiping away another tear as he explained that he wasn't sad. Well, he was initially, but right now he was just relieved. He told Mark that he was so glad that the both of them were okay, and that the children were going to be alright. He was so happy that all of these mistreated hybrids were going to get proper care and justice, and that they managed to take down a huge ring. He's never felt happier or more relieved in his life. Mark hugged him tightly, saying that he felt similarly. Mark felt another pair of arms hug him, and he moved his head to see who it was, only to discover Bambam.

He resisted the urge to glare, seeing as how now was really not the time to be doing that. He felt a pang of guilt wash over him, his emotionally vulnerable state having a mind of it's own. He suddenly felt the need to apologize to Bambam for the fight that had happened so early on in their friendship. He shouldn't have snapped at Bambam like that, and was more than owed an apology. Yugyeom's near-death experience opened a whole new world for Mark's eyes, and it was now that he realized he didn't want anything like that to happen to Bambam. He realized that he didn't want to go his whole life holding a grudge over Bambam for something so childish. It's not like Bambam had meant anything bad by it, though he would prefer for it to not happen again. 

 

"I would've been up here sooner, but I was talking to the kiddies," Bambam explained and Youngjae ruffled his hair a little, "They wouldn't talk to anyone else."

"Bambam works wonders with hybrids in these situations, you should've seen him in action," Jackson praised, "It was beautiful."

"I just understand them-is that Yugyeom?" Bambam questioned and instantly pulled away, his internal alarm raised.

"You know him?" Youngjae questioned, and Bambam nodded.

"Y-Yeah...I do, but I thought," Bambam paused, "I never thought I'd see him again."

"We're going to the hospital right now, did you want to come?" Youngjae offered, still [hugging ](http://www.lovethispic.com/uploaded_images/39045-Long-Hug.jpg)Mark.

"Yeah, yeah of course, as soon as Jackson and I finish up here." Bambam agreed, "Are you guys okay?"

"I'm fine, Mark might have a couple scratches but he's good," Youngjae smiled at Bambam, until his face turned serious as he gazed down at Mark, "Unless you're not telling me something."

"No, no I'm fine," Mark reassured, "Hey, Bam?" Mark questioned.

"Yeah?" Bambam hesitatingly asked.

"Truce?" Mark asked quietly, afraid that Bambam would turn him down, "I'm sorry for getting so bad at you...and biting Jackson...and almost starting a physical fight."

"Of course we can gave a truce," Bambam smiled, "And it's okay, I'm sorry for rubbing my scent all over your human."

"It's okay, he was your human before he was mine, I should've been a bit more mature." Mark said with a tiny smile, happy that the both of them made up.

"Sir, if you want to follow the ambulance, we'll be leaving as soon as we get him inside the vehicle." One of the other paramedics said before going to catch up with the gurney that was half way down the stairs.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hihi i'm sorry this took so long i kept getting distracted because i kept wanting to work on this one changkyun x wonho omegaverse thing i got in the draft vault. but!!! here's the second half of the other chapter, and i hope you like it!! after this event, the story will be getting softer and happier. I want to focus on developing their relationships with one another in these next few chapters.


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